Reading Rengay
Dear Readers, in the last column we met Garry Gay who explained how he invented the rengay in 1992, its structure and constituents. Today I share some sample rengay from the HSA website featuring the Haiku Society of America Rengay Award in Honour of Garry Gay, as also some more award-winning and published rengay with the kind permission of the talented poets. I am sure reading these poems will further broaden our understanding of this unique form of collaborative poetry.
Sample Rengay:
Yellowing Maple
Japanese garden—
the emptiness
of the tea house
grass in the cherry orchard
wet with dew
stepping stones . . .
different languages
in the air
hungry koi —
the moonbridge crowded
with children
the calligraphy
of pine branches
a turtle sunning
at the pond’s edge—
yellowing maple
Ion Codrescu 1, 3 & 5
Michael Dylan Welch 2, 4 & 6
First Place winner of the 2023 Haiku Society of America rengay contest, with prize money of $200. Commentary by judges Marcyn Del Clements and Seren Fargo from the HSA website.
Published in Frogpond 46:3, Autumn 2023, page 182, with the commentary.
Commentary by 2023 Haiku Society of America Rengay Contest Judges
“We both picked ‘Yellowing Maple’ as our favorite rengay. It presents such a lovely image of a Japanese garden. While it could be anywhere, for me it is Huntington Gardens in Pasadena, where tourists from all over the world come to enjoy the teahouse, the moonbridge, the Japanese maples in the fall.”
—Marcyn Del Clements
“A work of art. I absolutely love the artistry and beauty of this rengay. So aesthetically pleasing. This rengay stood out for me above all the others with its you-are-there descriptions. Each verse was a mini-clip of a Japanese garden, expertly crafted to evoke a different experience. With each one, I was taken to that place and that moment, and to the different sensations and emotions they evoked: melancholy, surprise, joy, tranquility. I was particularly struck by the freshness of the second verse and the painting-like imagery in the fifth. I was also pleased with the technical correctness of these two-line verses, which were not simply three-line haiku divided into two lines. Well done. A truly gorgeous rengay.”
—Seren Fargo
***
2023 Second Place
Color of Life
rising early
the woodpecker’s head
flicking wood chips
a Cortland apple
polished on flannel
meeting in the middle
of the row of raspberries
full buckets
sweat beads
tilting back
a cherry coke
licking a drop of blood
from a fingertip
snapping his suspenders
the old Farmall tucked away
in the barn
Jacquie Pearce 1, 3 & 5
Alan S. Bridges 2, 4 & 6
***
2023 Third Place – tie
Sky Dance
a killdeer’s cry
as it circles overhead
red sky at morning
criss-crossing the wrack line
ruddy turnstones
incoming tide
a swirl of plovers
lands at my feet
the back and forth
of waves
of sanderlings
phalaropes spinning
in the saltmarsh shallows
first of spring
the evening sky dance
of a woodcock
Kristen Lindquist 1, 3 & 5
Alan S. Bridges 2, 4 & 6
***
2023 Third Place – tie
Thirst
morning mist
a dew drop slides down
the mango leaf
green papaya’s bitter edge
monsoon heat
night showers
singing your name
red hibiscus
after the downpour . . .
chattering crows drown out
the muezzin
sugarcane harvest
a whiff of afternoon toil
moonbow
the pregnant tabby laps
from an oxcart rut
Neena Singh 1, 3 & 5
Billie Dee 2, 4 & 6
Published in Frogpond Journal. 46.3, Autumn 2023 issue alongwith the prize winning rengay.
The commentary of the judges gives us a broader perspective on the quality of the rengay. I gratefully acknowledge their valued comments and share the commentary of the judges on Billie’s and my collaborative rengay “Thirst” below:
JUDGES’ COMMENTARY:
Thirst has such delightful images, like a painting from Van Gogh.
~Marcyn Del Clements
Perfect title. Another well-crafted rengay, with satisfying variation between the verses, while staying true to the theme. I don’t know if the title was decided on before or after the rengay itself was written, but it is another perfect example of how important the title is. In this case, it reflects the commonality within the verses, but in an indirect, somewhat subtle fashion. No one verse actually mentioned ‘thirst.’ I also found great satisfaction in this rengay’s employment of so many of the physical senses — from the “papaya’s bitter edge” to “a whiff of afternoon toil.” Wonderfully provocative. Polishing it off so well, it ends with the full and rich imagery of a pregnant tabby lapping from an oxcart rut. Superb.
~Seren Fargo
***
Sixth Sense
the baby’s eyes
change color
with the sky Tom
loud train horn—
ice crystals hang in the air Michael
three-cheese lasagna—
a bit of garlic stuck
to the pulled-out hair Tom
at the seaside museum
the sample otter skin
worn bare Michael
parking lot’s fresh blacktop
simmers in the sun Tom
Peter and the Wolf—
my toddler’s eyes
opening wider Michael
Tom Clausen
Michael Dylan Welch
First prize winner in the 2007 Haiku Poets of Northern California rengay contest. First published in Mariposa #18, Spring–Summer 2008, page 30.
Also published on the Rengay page on the Haiku Foundation’s Haikupedia website.
***
Shades of Solitude
in the dell
a breeze scented John
by bay laurels
only a long shadow. Sherry
sitting with me
fireside
thoughts wander in and out
of the flames
tidings
come and go
new moon
all night vision quest
seeking my true name
stardust
lost in the wind
a bat’s echo
John Thompson (USA) and Sherry Grant (NZ)
Tandem,volume 2, number 2, 2022
***
Here’s my collaborative Rengay with Billie Dee that received the Second Place in the HSA contest in 2022. The commentary by the judge Michael Dylan Welch— the renowned poet is fascinating.
HSA 2022 Rengay Garry Gay Second Place
Weavings
rose-laced dawn
a young girl sweeping petals
from the courtyard
old narrow bed
our parents sleep entwined
Ganga ghat
the barefoot cobbler
with crossed legs
a rickshaw puller
wipes his sweat
city din
festival tuk-tuk
my driver ’s betel-stained teeth
Vedic chants
weaving prayers in one thread
a garland of marigolds
Billie Dee 1, 3 & 5
Neena Singh 2, 4, & 6
Judge’s Comments:
A rich cultural context weaves itself into this rengay, adding an exotic flavor for North American readers. The first two verses might at first seem to be possible anywhere, focusing on entwinings. But from the third verse on, readers know we are in India, which makes us reconsider the location of the first two verses. We experience temples, transportation devices, and religious chants, each one further developing the theme of things woven together. The dawn is laced with color, parents wrap themselves together in bed, legs are crossed, the city’s din envelops a sweating worker, teeth are stained, and prayers weave themselves into a garland of flowers. This rengay weaves us into its world.
~ Michael Dylan Welch (Judge)
Garry Gay gifted rengay to the world and we are grateful to him. He has been very patient to my queries and kind in sharing John’s work with us.
Enjoy the journey!
Neena Singh
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