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A "saijiki" is a collection of season words (kigo), references, and inspirations for haiku poets -- and so much more. When William J. Higginson, author of the indispensable Haiku World, An International Poetry Almanac (Kodansha International, 1996, ISBN 4-7700-2090-2), suggested that I consider creating an Alaska saijiki, I was intrigued. When I passed this suggestion along to Cindy, she readily agreed that we should begin. We will add to this over time, showing both her area of Alaska (central) and mine (southeast) -- since there is often a significant difference. We will add illustrative haiku and additional detail over time. Your comments and suggestions are warmly invited.
Photograph by Scott Perkins
One of the first signs of spring in Alaska. Skunk cabbage blossoms as beautiful as crocus.
SPRING
More Seasonal Haiku Coming Soon
SUMMER
first bear -- early March (Anchorage), mid-March (Juneau)
snowdrops -- early March (Juneau)
snowshoe hares turn brown (Anchorage)
first bear--
snowdrops bloom
under a cold sun
Billie Wilson
first warm day--
the snowshoe hare
speckled brown
Cindy Zackowitz
quiet cove--
an eagle plucks a salmon
from the clouds
Billie Wilson
Haiku Cycles (2001)
coho (silver) salmon start to run -- early July
sea-heaved ice
piled along the shore--
wild geese returning
Billie Wilson
The Haiku Calendar (2003)
magpies fledge -- early July (Anchorage)
Sitka roses bloom -- early July
raindrops --
a stinkbug swings
on a half-ripe berry
Cindy Zackowitz
salmonberries ready to eat -- early July
watermelon berries -- early July (Anchorage)
icy trail--
while his sled dogs rest
a musher views the moon
Billie Wilson
tulip shoots -- late March (Juneau), April (Anchorage)
mid-summer
the ski run filled
with fireweed
Cindy Zackowitz
fireweed blooms -- Early July and all month
fireweed goes to seed -- late August (Anchorage. The local story has it that there are 6 weeks left till the first snow once the fireweed has gone to seed).
in the drydock sling
the boat lowers to the sea--
a high call of gulls
Billie Wilson
Modern Haiku (2000)
bore tide -- all summer (Anchorage)
Golden North Salmon Derby -- late August (Juneau)
combat fishing -- All summer (Primarily the Kenai and Russian Rivers. Rivers so crowded that the fishermen are elbow to elbow. It is considered polite to shout ("fish on!") so that others can get out of the way and you can work the fish. As always, bears have first choice of fish.)
avalanche warnings -- early April
crocus -- early April; 3/10/05 (Juneau)
an avalanche roars
down Thunder Mountain--
first crocus
Billie Wilson
Haiku Headlines (2002); A New Resonance (2003)
first varied thrush – April 4, 2004 (Juneau)
first robin – April 5, 2004 (Juneau)
tea colored creek --
live salmon make their way
past the dead
Cindy Zackowitz
The Heron's Nest (Oct 2003)
flattened grass
where the bear slept
stink of salmon
Billie Wilson
The Heron's Nest (Aug 2002)
first skunk cabbage -- early to mid-April (Juneau--these bright yellow blooms are as welcome as crocus, and are all over the woods -- frequently also found in yards that vainly sought to triumph over muskeg. Cindy reports they get "a bit in the mountains.")
April 30, 2005 -- Snow and sleet today -- all over the skunk cabbage blooms. Spring is dragging its feet.
Photograph by Scott Perkins
first hummingbird -- mid-April (Juneau - Cindy reports there are no hummers in Anchorage. Bummer.)
gulls return to Anchorage -- April (Somehow it seems the gulls and the ravens have some sort of arrangement about living in the city. The ravens have the run of the city from about Sept. or Oct. to about April or May. The gulls don't migrate exactly but spend their winters farther down the coast where it is somewhat warmer. From April or May to Sept. or Oct. the ravens take off deeper into the woods, I can only guess to raise their families.)
first Winnebago -- April (Anchorage -- We don't get the cruise ships but we sure do get the motor homes... You know it's tourist season when the people with tans show up.)
ice goes out on the Nenana River -- late April or early May (the Nenana Ice Classic sells tickets every year and the person who picks the closest day and time wins a nice sum of money).
humpback whales return -- mid-April
humpback whales
home from Hawaii--
the fist cruise ship docks
Billie Wilson
Haiku Cycles (2001)
soft rain --
a baby moose nudges
its mother's flank
Cindy Zackowitz
first mosquito -- April (Juneau and Anchorage) - the size and number of Alaska mosquitoes are things legends are made of
first dandelions - early May (Juneau--a bright yellow trip into town)
Spring King Salmon Derby-- All Month of May (Juneau)
first cruise ship -- early May (Juneau); during the summer, there are often thousands more tourists in downtown Juneau than Alaskans.
out of the mist
a Tlingit war canoe
filled with tourists
Billie Wilson
songbirds return to Anchorage -- Early May
cherry blossoms -- early June (Juneau)
lupine -- early June (Juneau)
Photograph by Cindy Zackowitz
ground dogwood (bunchberry) -- early June (Juneau)
bunchberries after blooming -- early July (Juneau)
forget-me-nots (Alaska state flower) -- early June (Juneau)
we kiss
in the high mountain meadow
forget-me-nots
Billie Wilson
The Haiku Society of America Newsletter XXII:2 (2007)
AUTUMN
[photo coming soon]
WINTER
[photo coming soon]
migrating whales--
a chilly wind churns whitecaps
in the bay
Billie Wilson
HSA Newsletter XX:1 (2005)
long winter--
suddenly a redpoll's cap
takes my tears
Billie Wilson
first frost -- although technically a winter kigo, first frost occurs in mid- to late September here.
first frost--
a daddy-long-legs
skims over bright leaves
Billie Wilson
The Heron's Nest (2001)
