triveni spotlight: 21st january
- tejisethi13
- Jan 21, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 22, 2023
triveni spotlight A FEATURE EVERY ALTERNATE DAY! hosts: Teji Sethi and Kala Ramesh GUEST EDITOR: Michael Dylan Welch
five years
in the wrong window;
the violet’s first bloom
Kay F. Anderson Woodnotes #22, Autumn 1994
About the poem:
I once shared this poem with a friend of mine who immediately wanted to keep a copy. She had just moved to San Francisco to start a new life after ending a five-year marriage. She felt like she was finally blooming after being in the “wrong window” for all those years. On the surface, this poem is about just the flower itself, but the deeper meaning is what we bring to it as readers, as my friend did. For me it’s also a caution against procrastination—it reminds me of Gary Snyder’s “After weeks of watching the roof leak / I fixed it tonight / by moving a single board.” Isn’t that how life is sometimes?
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.
Lovely ku and love the flower chosen💖violets do need that special touch and attention to bloom.
Beautiful
I'm coming in late here. What beautiful comments forthis stunning haiku. five years
in the wrong window;
the violet’s first bloom
Kay F. Anderson
The first think I noticed was a semi-colon. So a semi-colon was in use in 1994. When did it drop away? 'wrong window' opens out a world of things we have been missing in our lives. most beautiful.
A beautiful poem indeed! Happens to all of us in different contexts! So very relatable!!
What to say about this poem happening in 1994. Where was i?
'wrong window' blew my senses off. It appears a very simple poem but zooming in takes us to that corridor of life where the best way to escape is jump out of this wrong window - take a big u-turn. And bloom yourself into a total different world of yours!
Anderson’s metaphoric ku really resonates for me. As a fruit farmer, I have learned that plants (in my instance, trees) do communicate—they annunciate rather slowly, but quite distinctly if you take the time to read them. And thanks for slipping in Snyder’s leaky roof poem. I have treasured this gem for years. It’s been a real touchstone for me, especially in times when troubles seem overwhelming. His wisdom is a true comfort, often wrapped in wry humor, as in this example.
So happy to see you here dear Michael! I’m eager to see what else blossoms in what remains of this eventful (for me) first month of the year.
—Billie