Haiku Dreaming Australia - Peer Assessment

Haiku Dreaming Australia ~ Peer Review

The Selection Process

Anybody may nominate their own or others' haiku for inclusion in The Dreaming Collection. And the Editor searches publications for good material.

Nominated haiku will normally have been published and thus have passed the judgement of an editor or judge. The Dreaming Editor then selects the best of these based on the criteria of: (1) quality, (2) relevance.

The Dreaming Collection is held to about 200 haiku. For each haiku added, a haiku must be retired to the Dreaming Archives. In selecting those to be retired the Editor is advised by Peer Reviews.

Peer Reviews

This is a vital step in keeping The Collection fresh, topical and constantly improving. Peer Reviews make room for new work to be seen while preserving the best of what is now there. Please take part.

Email me ( John Bird, Editor ) in confidence, and say which ten haiku you think should be archived to allow new haiku to be displayed.

It's that simple but so important. If you would like to tell me which haiku particularly appealed to you then that too would be helpful.

You can work from the haiku in context (home) or from the list below where every haiku has a discrete number for easy reference.

Haiku # 002
yellowing fields
hovering not hovering
the nankeen kestrels

Haiku # 003
summer heat
a lorikeet sips nectar
from the flame tree

Haiku # 007
kookaburras ...
dawn brings laughter
to our bedroom

Haiku # 010
breathing the silence
before the catbird calls
                         first light

Haiku # 011
the thump-thump
of the wonga-wonga pigeon
echoes in my head

Haiku # 012
traffic snarl–
galahs on the phone line
upside down

Haiku # 0013
storm birds
crying
into the thunder

#016
bare twigs-
flurry of the swamphens'
mating dance

#017
Bush Christmas
a Kookaburra eats snake
outside my tent

#018
black cockatoos –
the distant rumble
of Harleys

#019
cold moon
the panel beater's dog
howls at a hubcap

#020
spring morning
Dog and I exchange
silly grins

#021
old queenslander
its verandah posts
stained by dogs

#025
old ute
a bow legged Blue
master of the tray

#026
dust storm
the red kelpie
blending in

#027
barking dogs
the swaggie's progress
through town

#029
frosty shadows—
a shorn sheep clatters
down the ramp

#032
late spring
lambs play
in the slaughter yard

#034
thunder
lambs press against
their mothers' bellies

#035
a dingo howls—
the orphaned lamb's
rough tongue

#038
sheep country –
passing clouds graze
the hilltop

#039
abandoned farm—
tufts of wool snagged
on barbed wire

#040
summer twilight
kangaroos boxing
on the golf course

#045
sunrise
a dandelion droops
from the wallaby's mouth

#046
pregnant again...
the fluttering of moths
against the window

#049
water dragon
on a head-high post—
the pulse in its neck

#050
summer rain
a treefrog's feet
white on the window

#052
lifting mist-
the bunyip dissolves
into a tree fern

#054
lingering sunset –
a flying fox stretches
one wing

#056
new dawn –
the aborigine casts
a long shadow

#058
dot by dot
she paints yam dreaming—
the billy boils over

#059
rock face
a red ochre handprint
above graffiti

#060
sacred site –
lantana overruns
the melaleuca

#063
mother and son
sit with their interpreter—
breeze stirs the dust

#064
rock carvings honey ants follow the grooves

#065
Didgeridoo
an emerging cicada
shakes-a-leg

#066
Sorry Day
a breeze stirs
the gum?s leaves

#072
Port Arthur ruins
a green rosella flies
between the bars

#075
waiting for dawn
the bugler's breath
rising

#078
Anzac Day
a baby's cry fills
our minute's silence

#081
sprigs of rosemary
something about the tea urn
makes me cry

#083
padding up –
all seagulls face
the city end

#087
hills hoist –
a leg of his karate suit
kicks in the breeze

#088
floodlit field
a cane toad crouched
in the goal mouth

#091
ninth tee—
a kookaburra laughs
in my backswing

#092
fish story
a cormorant spreads its wings
                                 w i d e r

#093
lying on its side
near the tavern
Southern Cross

#094
Port Fairy wharf
a trail of fish scales
leads to the pub

#095
beer garden table
the blurred edges
of many circles

#098
summer haze
dried beer foam
in my empty glass

#099
outback pub
the aftertaste
of bulldust

#100
gentle swell-
a pregnant woman
floats by

#101
monsoon—
the bark gunyah
left to rot

#102
slab hut –
Sporting Globe pages
fill the gaps

#103
hippy shack –
he opens an umbrella
over the stereo

#104
veranda bed
corrugated sky
nailhole stars

#108
penthouse–
she looks down
on the birds

#109
nursing home
she asks what's beyond
the next roof

#110
beach sunset
a frangipani trodden
into wet sand

#112
reef dive
a turtle climbs green water
into the blue

#113
old dinghy
sinks under waves
of dune grass

#115
seaside bench –
an old man looks for sand
between his toes

#116
on Bondi
touching her breasts
my shadow

#119
white beach-
the old shipwreck's
rust stains

#121
back from the beach
unpacking
the summer heat

#122
breathing with the rock pool
slowly
the crabs come out

#124
fishing harbour-
one wooden post
without a pelican

#125

in the clear water only their shadows - jellyfish

#126
sukuu te-no kurage-ya seimeisen fukaku

           picking up a jellyfish...
           my lifeline
           clear and deep

#128
underwater observatory
the grouper's eye
level with mine

#131
lapping water–
shadows of mangroves
push against the tide

#133
billabong –
a dragonfly darts
pose to pose

#134
red dawn
the fisherman's hands
gutting the mullet

#136
way up there
between skyscrapers
clouds getting away

#139
city corner wind
flares a monk's robes—
skinny legs

#144
city street
the briefest touch
of a stranger's hand

#145
amongst the graffiti
a tiny violet
clinging

#146
my neighbour finishes
our dividing fence –
a last wave

#147
suburban loneliness
the incessant spinning
of rotary clothes hoists

#148
convalescence
noticing the bark patterns
for the first time

#150
autumn dusk
terracotta rooftops
sink into smoke

#151
laundry day –
a magpie on the clothesline
singing down rain

#154
school tuckshop
the drone of bees
at the bubblers

#155
for an hour
the moon hangs
with the singlets

#156
by its silence
wedge-tailed eagle shadow-
warns the valley

#157
stud farm ~
riderless horses
running for themselves

#158
hailstorm over –
half their tomato crop
intact

#159
wheat field
sound of wind stilled
by rain

#160
heat wave –
under the wheat truck
a magpie's eyes

#162
moves his swag
to the other shoulder–
the long paddock

#163
dairy farm –
in the dry paddock
two cars for sale

#164
rivergum shade
the bushie's laptop
on his swag

#165
farm sale
a butterfly settles on
the good china

#167
saltpan
the deep creases
round his eyes

#168
crescent moon–
the fence rider stays
on his side

#169
desert heat –
the blue-tongue lizard
sheds a skin

#175
stargazing . . .
the camp oven
glows red

#176

desert sky - wishing I knew more about everything

#177
woodfire
flickering in the silence
corralled horses

#178
drought the last bullet shines

#179
waratah in bloom –
our postman whistles
the tor�ador song

#181
beach banksia –
all the shades
of dying

#183
teen clusters
in the council park
golden wattle

#185
tea-tree blossom –
the thud of a pick
into frozen ground

#187
night shift over
the poinciana's
warm glow

#188
winter park
the metal nametags
of dormant plants

#189
changing the clocks
a tinge of pink
on the christmas bush

#190
sleepless night
a frog crosses
the tin roof

#192
roadworks...
a cow watches
a fence post

#193
behind the fence
of the former zoo
wildflowers

#194
paddock gate open
a line-up of galahs
on the fence wire

#195
the calf's fur
licked into curls –
woodstove smoke

#196 kangaruu ikki-ni kawa-o kozokotosh

a kangaroo
clears the creek in one big leap
New Year's Eve

#199 hanasugi-no usagi-o dakeba myaku uteri

blossoms almost gone
the rabbit i hold close
quickens its pulse

#200
small town –
no fence around
the cemetery

#201
dawn shadows—
a crow rides the windmill
back to the trough

#203
dawn sky
steam from the lamb's
throat

#204
that distant ridge
I?ll never climb...
autumn rain

#205
country town
a railway station
without tracks

#208
the dead centre—
a disappearing roadtrain
lowers the stars

#209
rotting fence post
the big flood's mark
still there

#210
lorikeet chatter
she ups the volume
on the talk show

#214
last rites –
incense dilutes the reek
of irish whiskey

#215
2 year old
the sun
through his ears

#216
in deep shade
of the catholic church
a protestant's dog

#217
realtor's window—
bare branches subdivide
the seashore

#223
fog
skyscrapers
all the same height

#224
rainy afternoon
an ibis
slots into a row of ibises

#225
heat haze
the miles
of boundary fence

#226
bay shallows
a starfish moves its fingers
over mine

#229
Flood marks
high in the ti-tree –
how deep this path!

#230

cave wall
the outline of an empty hand

#231
sitting by the brisbane river
listening
to your muddy confessions

#233
conversion -
the sun
falls between goalposts

#234
one lane bridge
a stray sheep
has right of way

#237
one egg
rattling in the pot
autumn rain

#238
end of the road
as our tempers cool
a bellbird

#239
dusk, a surfboard
comes in to the beach
alone

#240
head first
in the garbage bin
sacred ibis

#241

old windmill gap-toothed

#242
turn of the tide -
the sea taking back
its jellyfish

#243
bare frangipani
a rake against
the fence

#244
good friday -
four pelicans corner
a school of mullet

#245
outside toilet
I scoop a frog
from the bowl

#246
path
to the outhouse -
wild roses

#247
St Kilda Esplanade
the chihuahua?s master
walking tall

#249
early autumn
a black-clad windsurfer
glides across the bay

#250
spring fever
the commodore cruising
to a stereo's throb

#251
traffic pause -
a whipbird echoes
through stillness

#252
suburban street -
only the untended patch
has autumn berries

#253
easter monday
fresh flowers
on the roadside

#254
rejection letter -
the willy-wagtail
flicks its tail

#255
garage sale -
a Rolls Royce
with a roof rack

#256
sandy feet
the drag of family medals
on his tee shirt

#259
forty in the shade
the rainwater tank
rings hollow

#260
a fallow field
as yesterday
the kite hovers

#261
the rusted hooks
in Dad's tackle box -
spring tide

#262
busy road –
sparrows drinking
from a stone horse trough

#263
Georgian house –
touching the convict broad arrow
on a step

#264
a pelican
skims the waves
sunday paper

#265
two years of drought
another pause
in the conversation

#266
rough floorboards
resting shearers share
their silence

#267
a woolly back
clamped between long legs
- click go the cameras

#268
shearer at work
the sheep's world
upside down

#269
red dust road
a cattle truck reaches
the vanishing point

#270
the spring
in a wattle spray
Silvereyes

#271
total fire ban
a rat's nest
in the unlit bonfire

#272
naked sky
three Morton Bay Figs
sawn to a log pile

#273
Archibald prize -
the private schoolgirls
smell of pencil shavings

#274
dodging
a march wind
boomerang

#275
red moon
the calligraphy
of charred trees

#276
Christmas barbecue
the smell of bushland
burning

#277

#278

#279
empty field
      a rabbit
           a rabbit

#280
bushfire ash
the naked shapes
of rock

#281
out of black silence
the wobble
of a burnt lamb

#282
a splash of yellow
standing
against the firestorm

#283
days later –
still the smell
of burnt things

#284
tent-city ...
a girl's smile from inside
the fireman's jacket

#285
Anzacs –
the glint of pennies
spinning

#286
sunshine –
my child finds the blue
in a crow�s feather

#287
evening hush
a kangaroo
hops the ridgeline

#288
     on a gentle day
   the tanami shivers
in the long distance

#290
powerlines �
starlings and sports shoes
rest abut

#291
foot on knee,
spear in ground
           a penny stamp

#292
bitter monday
    he feeds his team scarf
    to the office shredder

#293
internet:
the pleasure of googling
old enemies

#294

#295
new year
sweeping up
the Christmas beetles

#296
nest-building –
a magpie sings
with its mouth full

#297
jacana
a drop of water
rolls back and forth

#298
the bare branches
alive with cockatoos
she has her good days

#299
hum of blowflies
blood from the kangaroo�s ear
yet to dry

#300
Remembrance Day
Grandpa in white singlet
with medals

#301
the farmer calls
his kelpie home . . .
flame trees darken

#302
   rainbow's end—
the crabbing child
  empties her pot

#303
beach cricket –
bluebottles linger
in afternoon shadows

#304
Diving its head
deep into the moon –
a black swan

#305
galahs
on the sight screen
the batsman appeals

#306
summer heat
the bush turkey pauses
in my shadow

#307
water restrictions —
sharing the shower
with ants

#308
Sunday morning
a dog sniffs the base
of the goal-post

#309
Anzac sunrise
the old bugler's lips
quiver

#310
the old dog
at the school gate �
winter rain

#311
boomerang
my fingers read
its journey

#312
jagged wingtips
the smooth flight
of a black cockatoo

#313
walking the breakwall
a stingray
keeping pace

#314
         ocean breeze...
    abalone shells tremble
beneath the bedroom nets

#315
billabong �
a tremulous light
on the gums

#316
afternoon heat
the race caller's voice
keeps rising

#317
holiday crowds–
a wombat ambles
through the snowgums

#318
snow gum belt
the brumby mare nudges
her foal to stand

#319
dissolved
in damp garden weeds
junk mail

#320

night match the scrum leaves behind its steam

#321
solitary gum –
a hundred merinos
crowd each other's shade

#322
the surprise
of the irish spelling...
transport list b

#323
beginning rain
a soft wind brushes
the casuarinas

#324
roadkill–
my windscreen fills
with eagle

#325
hot pavement
a swimmers footprint
evaporating

#326
olympic dream –
the slap of trainers
on a bush track

#327
dusk �
             a butcher bird eyes
the dog
             the dog�s dinner

#328
migrating ibis
a child's black kite
breaks free

#329
monsoons–
a row of mold-speckled shoes
at the entrance

#330
on the bluff
the burnt-out remains
of last year

#331
firecrackers—
kissed by a stranger
under the bridge

#332
record heat
a soon-to-be-mum
backs into a wave

#333
midday sun
the yellow box stump
beaded with sap

#334
passing traffic –
the flicker of bees
among grevillea

#335
from deep shade
a currawong calls
in slow motion

#336
lingering drought
cracks in the walls
widening

#337
Anzac dawn
the bronze wall
chills my hand

#338
In the summer heat
of a city breathing out
the smell of brickdust

#339
winter rain –
the lake creeps
under the fence

#340
kids reenact
the First Fleet arrival
boat people

#341
explaining
his ancestry —
far-off laughter

#342
rippling over
the stony creek bed ~
heat waves

#343
morning light
a few mangoes have
dropped

#344
silent dawn
the oak's trunk glistens
with cicada shells

#345
on the patio
possum footprints
in apricot juice

#346
lingering twilight
a water dragon's tail
dangles in the pool

#347
bellbirds –
half a dozen stubbies
clinking in the creek

#348
spring sunshine
the python oozes
onto my roof

#349
by the shed
   three brolgas
line dancing

#

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