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triveni spotlight: 17th january

triveni spotlight A FEATURE EVERY ALTERNATE DAY! hosts: Teji Sethi and Kala Ramesh GUEST EDITOR: Michael Dylan Welch



snapped line—

the salmon’s full length

in the air



Francine Porad Woodnotes #19, Winter 1993



About the poem:

This is my favourite of Francine’s many fine haiku. What a dynamic moment! The fishing line has snapped, no doubt because of the weight or strength of that salmon, and now the fish flies through the air, showing its full size. A background story here is that Francine’s husband Bernard was an avid fisherman, and Francine wrote many other fishing-related poems as well, especially ones that arose out of family anecdotes. This is the untold story behind this poem, a haiku about one fish that got away.



Note by the Editor

Woodnotes triveni spotlight


by Michael Dylan Welch


From 1989 to 1997, in various capacities, I edited or helped to edit Woodnotes, the quarterly journal of the Haiku Poets of Northern California, and in 1996 I took on the journal independently before replacing it with my new journal Tundra. I lived in the San Francisco area for more than a dozen years and was active with HPNC from its first year in 1989 until I moved north to Seattle in 2002. Working on Woodnotes with such coeditors as vincent tripi, Ebba Story, Christopher Herold, and Paul O. Williams was a fine education in the art of haiku. The following are selections of favourite haiku and senryu from the journal’s 31 issues, with brief commentary. These poems are expressions of wonder, or as Billy Collins once described haiku, they exhibit “existential gratitude.” In return, I am deeply grateful for the thousands of poems published in Woodnotes over the years, and the hundreds of poets who contributed to the journal’s success. * * * * * This month is going to be a treat for our members. _()_ Thank you so much, Michael.

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2 Comments


Kanjini Devi
Kanjini Devi
Jan 17, 2023

Fantastic!

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Kala Ramesh
Kala Ramesh
Jan 17, 2023

Beautiful haiku and you've given a very interesting back story. Thank you, Michael.

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