October Kigo Challenge
Kigo, or seasonal words, are a literary element commonly used in haiku, that allow the poet to instantly transport their reader to a time and place.
For October we challenged our poets to use the following kigo in their pieces: barren, nutmeg, or squash. Below are the best submissions of both haiku and “One Breath” poetry.
first frost her grocery bag full of butternut squashLaila Brahmbhattwinter chillon barren branchesbirdsong Tuyet Van Do
November breeze . . .a sprinkle of mum's warmthin my nutmeg milkVaishnavi Ramaswamy - Chennai, India
almost barrenevery forest trailinked in rainJoanna Ashwell - UK
sunset dinnerroasted squash platedon Blue WillowBonnie J Scherer - Alaska, USAlightning at dusknutmeg swirlsin simmering milk Laila Brahmbhatt scent of nutmegfrom the kitchenmother's soft hum Bhawana Rathore - India
a barren fieldthe plow shiningas it cutsJeffrey Ferrara - Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
planting again on barren soil . . . grandpa's alzheimer's Neha Singh Soni - India
a full moon in barren maple branchestangled thoughts of homeChen-ou Liu
in the garden patchlast yellow squashbigger and biggerRuth Holzer - Potomac Falls, Virginia, USA