Frameless Sky, 2022

darkening skies
the rolling thunder
of a war drum

forming a delta
blood streams in her eyes

John Hawkhead and Hifsa Ashraf


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war debris
a homeless girl gathers
the pieces of her doll

following a paper trail
through the banking system

Hifsa Ashraf and John Hawkhead


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farewell

her tiny hand prints
on the train window

a lonely whistle
at the point of no return
crossing the border


Hifsa Ashraf and John Hawkhead



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victory march

the glorious history
of graveyards

under the general's statue
a homeless child eats
birdseed

John Hawkhead and Hifsa Ashraf

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Lingering Grief

night fog

clouding thoughts
of darkness
white noise

on a loop

vinyl notes
keep me awake
until dawn

mom's lullaby

whispers

in the air

dense smoke

Hifsa Ashraf & Richard Thomas


80% of the proceeds from the DVD n online viewing sale will be donated to Donate to Help Children in Ukraine. Frameless Sky Issue 16 - Dedicated to Ukraine

https://youtu.be/oFG0aN6L3kA

Kingfisher, 2022

retreating
to my old self
blue orchid

Kingfisher, issue #5 April, 2022

The Modern Kigo Project Competition, 2022

 The 2nd Modern Kigo Project Competition

‘SPRING Season’ 2022 WINNERS 

Joint 2nd place RUNNER-UP

Hifsa Ashraf (Pakistan)

KIGO: moth nap 

DEFINITION: 

Spring is the season of transformation;  it affects night sleep by causing short/insufficient sleep which may be depicted as a “moth nap”. 

HAIKU:

moth nap—   

drifting from dream

to dream 

Alan’s comments:

There’s a lilting, lullaby-like feel to this haiku which works so well. And the choice of the nocturnal moth for the kigo further adds to the whole. The idea that our dreams work in a different timescale to reality also added a touch of surreality—many dreams in a single ‘moth nap’!

Réka’s comments:

The imagery of a moth nap(ping) is enigmatic. I particularly like that the poet  constructs the imagery of her kigo around a moth rather than a butterfly. 

https://haikubasecamp.wordpress.com/2022/06/16/the-2nd-modern-kigo-project-competition/?fbclid=IwAR1t2ZaB7npYy7Yn-NwkPkU_h8YLYO1SXFXrs2rqrMI0NW-9TXUER7Ww1Es

Also included in The Pan Haiku Review, Issue 2

https://www.callofthepage.org/the-pan-haiku-review/

Fields of Gold: poems of peace

war zone

silhouettes of birds
one after another
dissipating into
the crimson horizon

-Hifsa Ashraf




ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B12K1GKR
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8821825087


Fields of Gold, poems of peace from around the world is a collection of short form poetry from poets around the globe showing their support for the people of Ukraine. All proceeds from the sale of this volume will go to D.E.C. (Disasters Emergency Committee)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fields-Gold-poems-Steve-Wilkinson/dp/B0B12K1GKR/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=3SF8ZX8DI5E4X&keywords=fields+of+gold+poems&qid=1652475745&sprefix=%2Caps%2C71&sr=8-1

Hedgerow Journal, 2022

bedfast— 

morning fog intertwines 

with the old oak 

hedgerow, Issue 138

The Cherita, 2022

dusk

my daughter
reminds me
 
to close the window
 
Arvinder Kaur and Hifsa Ashraf

at twilight
 
the parallel rivers
center parting
of her silver hair
 
Arvinder Kaur and Hifsa Ashraf

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dust tattooed faces

echoes

of hooves

along the cobbles

 

 

Hifsa Ashraf & John Hawkhead 

Gembun Anthology, 04

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harvest wind 
swaying in the field
mustard blossoms
 
a rain of blood and tears
 
Hifsa Ashraf & John Hawkhead 

windswept rain, Gembun Anthology 4

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BR77Q2CP?ie=UTF8&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=6738&tag=wwwailicouk-21&creativeASIN=B0BR77Q2CP&SubscriptionId=

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Eid moon gazing

the solitude
of a day without you
amid festivities

Hifsa Ashraf and Arvinder Kaur

evening, Gembun Anthology 2

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B71WQRZ1?ie=UTF8&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=6738&tag=wwwailicouk-21&creativeASIN=B0B71WQRZ1&SubscriptionId=

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muscle memory

his old hands clutch

at what might have been

 

in the cold evening

when he disowns

his own shadow

John Hawkhead and Hifsa Ashraf (Issue 5.9 February 2022)

The Cherita, 2021

loose knot

a wooden bucket

swaying in the well

 

stilled reflection

our chosen star

becomes a black hole

 

Hifsa Ashraf and John Hawkhead #5:4 September 2021

 

------

 

old oak branches

 

curl around

its shadow

 

the deer’s heart

beating a path

for the bullet

Hifsa Ashraf and John Hawkhead #5:5 October 2021

 

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white noise

the rippling caw

of a mountain crow

 

scents of splintered pine

wash over the high falls

 

snowmelt in her eyes

 

 Hifsa Ashraf and John Hawkhead #5:6 November 2021

The Heron's Nest, 2022

unfolding 

the story of a migrant 

sea water foam 

The Heron's Nest, Volume XXIV, Number 4: December 2022

-------

winter sky

unfolding the dog ears
from my diary

The Heron's Nest, Volume XXIV, Number 2: June 2022

The Haiku Foundation Monthly Kukai, 2022

hat-trick of haiku :) 

Monthly Kukai, July  

Honorable Mention 

evening heat . . . 

mom holds my hands 

one last time

---------

Monthly Kukai, June

Second Prize 

back to school . . . 

a refugee child’s eyes 

fill with sunshine 

— Hifsa Ashraf (51 points - 6; 0; 4; 4; 1) 

There is an inherent and powerful “hook” (albeit experienced more strongly by some readers than by others) in the very mention of a child or children in haiku. With this comes the hazard that it is almost too easy to engage the reader’s sympathetic response without really delivering anything notable or specific. This poem has the merit of reminding us how the majority of children, in any culture, thrive on companionship and mental stimulus, just as much –– if not so obviously –– as a secure home and caring family.

In June there were 155 submissions from twenty-seven countries across five continents.

One hundred ten voters casting ballots determined the following results.

theme: sunshine

https://thehaikufoundation.org/thf-monthly-kukai-july-2022/

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Monthly Kukai, May 

Second Prize

wildflowers — 

the life we live 

without excuses 

 — Hifsa Ashraf (51 points - 3; 3; 6; 2; 2) 

 This haiku stands apart from the others in so far as the word blossoms has been sidestepped. It is at the same time the most enigmatic of them all. I do not know how to interpret “the life we live/without excuses”. I do know that idea pulls me in, and that I will return to ponder its meaning more than once, if not many times. Its meaning for me, that is.

theme: blossoms

In May there were 153 submissions from twenty-three countries across five continents.
Ninety-nine voters casting ballots determined the following results.

https://thehaikufoundation.org/thf-monthly-kukai-june-2022/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=thf-monthly-kukai-june-2022