For several years, a group of haiku writers has been meeting at The Oaks Brasserie in Canberra. Set under stands of mature oak, cypress and other trees, the venue is perfect for the discussion of haiku and other Japanese forms of poetry.

During 2021, our group decided it was time to publish an anthology of our own writing. The result is Haiku @ The Oaks: The Ink Sinks Deeper edited by Hazel Hall and Kathy Kituai, with artwork by Cheryl Jobsz.

The 28 page chapbook is published by Picaro Poets, an imprint of Ginninderra Press.

The Haiku @ The Oaks group comprises six writers based in the Canberra region: Jan Dobb (our convenor), Glenys Ferguson, Hazel Hall, Kathy Kituai, Marietta McGregor and myself. In addition, we’ve maintained a friendship with Sheila Sondik who has attended our meetings while in Canberra on family visits. Sheila’s home town is in Washington State (USA).

Each member of the group has been widely published in Australia and other countries. Our collection presents 49 haiku, seven by each author. For example:

one slash
of the knife’s cold blade
pink watermelon

(Jan Dobb)

washing dishes
the circular motion
of remembering

(Glenys Ferguson)

light horseman
hearing that whinny
in his dreams

(Hazel Hall)

When we meet, the talk is always warm and the discussion invigorating.

time travel
I can’t stop chatting
with Issa

(Kathy Kituai)

three tiny bones
in my inner ear
meadow lark

(Marietta McGregor)

Our conversations are informative and entertaining, though they don’t necessarily move in straight lines.

the looping tracks
of meandering rivers
scribbly gum

(Sheila Sondik)

spring melt
the neck of a swan
from the mountains

(Gregory Piko)

Every Haiku @ The Oaks meeting is imbued with shared respect and camaraderie. We are delighted to see the writing of each member anthologised in a single collection. Haiku @ The Oaks: The Ink Sinks Deeper is available from Ginninderra Press.