Dateline: 2 December 2010
I had no idea what to expect when I launched this contest several months ago. But the response was great and a total of 268 haiku submissions were received. Every poem is good in its own way. Some are whimsical. Some are serious. Some really make you think. Choosing the winning entries was difficult. Very difficult.
My wife (Marlene) and I were the official judges of this contest. In the adult category (219 submissions), we both evaluated every poem together and ended up with 33 finalists. I then printed off two copies of the 33 haikus and we each spent some time on our own trying to whittle our list down to a top ten.
Both of us were in total agreement about the first place winner. From there, we shared many of the same favorites but I can tell you there was a lot of discussion and deliberation.
We decided that the fourth prize in the adult category would go to a whimsical or offbeat haiku. We also changed the prizes just a little. Since there were far less submissions in the teen category, we decided to give two of the teen prizes as 5th and 6th prizes in the adult category. That left two prizes in the teen category, so we added a third place prize there.
Then we decided to acknowledge five haiku in the adult category that were close finalists. They are listed below as "Honorable Mention" (but no prizes are being awarded).
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I would like to thank everyone who participated in this contest— especially the younger kids. All 219 poems entered in this contest are like little 17-syllable jewels, and I feel richer for having read them.
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Now, without further ado, on behalf of our esteemed contest sponsor (Planet Whizbang), it is my great honor to present to you the winning entries in the Deliberate Agrarian Haiku Poetry Contest for 2010...
Adult Category
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1st
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Unfold before me
Yards of rich, loamy fabric
I'll sow something fine
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Lisa Bolster
Florida
(wins a Planet Whizbang wheel hoe)
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2nd
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Farmhouse kitchen morn
Cookstove fire warms bread and friends
Snow blows cold outside
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Scott Alexander
Pennsylvania
(wins a Red Pig half moon hoe)
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3rd
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Downy cover white
blankets my garden bed
Sleep till spring awakes
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Cindy Dougherty
New York
(wins a gift box of Morning Glory soaps)
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4th
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Tragedy marked by
Lingering luminescence
Firefly Windshield Splat
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Daniel G. MacNeal
Maryland
(wins a Handcrafted-by-Garth Piggy Back Massage Roller)
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5th
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The sunflower smiles
As she is kissed by the sun
And warmed to the heart
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Cody Hahn
Texas
(wins the Back To Basics book)
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6th
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Bring the harvest in,
Grateful for God's abundance,
Jars lined up on shelves.
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Gina Martin
Pennsylvania
(wins the Tightwad Gazette book)
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Honorable Mention
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Scythe sings quietly
Cutting dewy morning hay
Birds pick up the tune
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Wayne Seidl
Maine
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I teach my daughter
to tie a hook with the knot
my father taught me
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Temple Cone
Maryland
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Last light flees the sky
I head for mom and supper
Hoe on my shoulder
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Elizabeth Kaiser
Nebraska
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This year, the leek plants
with tiny purple flowers
opened up like fireworks
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Daniel Kane Rajala
British Columbia, Canada
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Sweet-smelling hayfields
lining the well-traveled road
beckon me homeward.
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Lee Fenstermacher
South Carolina
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Teen Category
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1st
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Chopping tomato
Fresh from the garden outside
I'll do peppers next
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Kendra Roden
Texas
(wins a set of pie irons)
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2nd
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Pumpkins in the field
Ripening every day.
Harvest time is soon.
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Zachary Hahn
Texas
(wins Encyclopedia of Country Living book)
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3rd
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Squirrels fattening
And storing away their nuts
Winter's not far off.
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Macy Fout
Ohio
(wins a gift box of Morning Glory soaps)
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Youth Category
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1st
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Leaves in the wind
Twirling like a tornado
Settle down again
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Brayden Panazzi (age 8)
Pennsylvania
(wins waffle irons, pancake mix & maple syrup)
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2nd
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Netted butterfly
Flickering wings like a fan
Butterfly be free
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Malia Bolster (age 6)
Florida
(wins two pie irons)
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3rd
(Five 3rd place prizes of Private Eye loupes with lanyards go to the following)
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Watch the hummingbird
sip nectar from a flower.
Now it flies away.
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Jonathan Craig (age 6.5)
California
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pork turkey ham beans
corn beef chicken chili all
are a balanced meal
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Noah Winslow (age 10)
Tennesee
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horses so pretty
galloping in the pasture
manes and tails flowing
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Grace Johnson (age 10)
Missouri
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I have a chicken.
She is my favorite chicken.
Her name is Katie.
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Katherine Waitz (age 7)
Texas
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Leaves in the blue sky
Falling—orange, red, and brown-
It is now autumn.
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Maegan Webster (age 8)
Georgia
