pollen season
the shepherd's whistle
out of tune
Published in Modern Haiku issue, Vol 57.2, Summer 2026.
https://www.modernhaiku.org/issue57-2/index.html
Old Haveli
naming constellations
after fairies
afternoon haze
roasting peanuts
in the sand
broken wooden fence
covered with
the ripe grapevines
Arvinder Kaur, India
Hifsa Ashraf, Pakistan
Published in Freshout Mag, Sept 21, 2026
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DLWB39Goi/
https://x.com/FreshoutMag/status/2101971450844389433
https://www.instagram.com/p/Ddi2AU5RMi7/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&stkn=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
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Basant Day
spring festival
desi food aroma
from roof to roof
gathering friends
dhol beats uplift
matching kites
above the clouds
a double rainbow
our laughter
breaking silence
bhangra after
bo kata
-Hifsa Ashraf
Inspired by the three-days Basant Kite Festival starting from Feb 06 in Punjab, Pakistan
distant shooting
ellipses of starlings
scattered in the sky
Circle of Salt, June 01, 2026
murky dusk the raven tickling the demons within
night terror the strobe lights puzzling my aura
moonlit night
the cosmic gyre
of the sea
evening meditation
the galactic rotation
of my blues
open sky
blue stardust
spiraling—
in my dream
another universe
Published in VSANA on the stone of July, Patterns.
https://www.vsana.org/ppp-50-july-1--26
evening prayer
a drifting leaf falls
in my cupped hands
receding wave—
the folded wings
of a migratory bird
meandering through
the village alley
floodwater
fading all at once
the childhood laughter
returning home
a labyrinth
of the old trails
thawing mountains
one after another
leave behind
the lingering cold
of an old war
melting ice—
the barren summits
of glaciers
late-night train
through bare trees
in the jungle—
how barren life feels
after departure
across the foggy lake
the blurred tips
of the city line—
how gloomy life looks
from a distance
