Winners

1st (Winner of the Jeanette Stace Memorial Award): Amelia Stapley, Christchurch - 'earthquake'

1st & 2nd Runner-up, Secondary: Harry Frentz, Tauranga - 'last light' and 'autumn leaves'

1st Runner-up, Primary/Intermediate: Olivia Hay-Smith, Christchurch - 'mother's day'

2nd Runner-up, Primary/Intermediate: Gabby Dodd-Terrell, Christchurch - 'ocean'

Highly Commended: Dominique Harrison, Christchurch; Emma Olsen, Christchurch; George Lester, Christchurch; Harry Frentz, Tauranga; Juliet McLachlan, Christchurch.

Commended: Adele Thurlow, Wanganui; Alexandra Henderson, Christchurch; Anaru Skipper, Arrowtown; Hannah Ban, Auckland; Hugh Mercer-Beumelburg, Christchurch; Jinwoong Choi, Christchurch; Juliet McLachlan, Christchurch; Juliette Newman, Christchurch; Leika McIver, Palmerston North; Liam Kelly (2), Christchurch; Maya Laws, Christchurch; Megan Kivell, Christchurch; Nathan Penrose (2), Christchurch; Nikki So-Beer, Rotorua; Oliver Hill, Lower Hutt; Siew Jey Ren, Singapore.

Judge's Report (Judge: Owen Bullock)

My first reaction on reading through these haiku by young writers was of appreciation for their creativity; they seemed to be looking in every direction, with some healthy observations and descriptions of the world, including attempts at capturing the sounds of nature. A number of haiku in both sections were written over one or two lines, instead of three, creating variety. Several poems were presented as Haiga (with images), not really part of the brief of the competition, but enjoyable nonetheless.

Some writers, however, didn't look at what was immediately in front of them; their haiku included too much comment or used old-fashioned language, with an overtly 'poetic' diction, as if there were some standard way to write poetry. Many used anthropomorphism (objects having human qualities), which is best avoided in haiku. Those written in the past tense lost power. A good number were written in strict 5-7-5 form, but very few were successful in this guise (only one being selected for its poetic ability and haiku spirit). Others needed to animate the emotion in the poem with more active verbs. Some haiku were written after another formula, e.g. presenting a single-word noun, followed by an action. Of these, a few worked surprisingly well, especially in the Primary and Intermediate section, but on the whole they had the effect of devaluing each other. It's worth bearing in mind that, as time passes, certain words get overused, such as 'beautiful'; the poet needs to work hard to find a fresh way to express the moment.

From the Secondary School entries, I made a short-list of 36 haiku, which was quickly whittled to 16 as I searched out those with a greater sense of a moment in time, rather than a nice idea. This was less intellectual material, though the odd metaphorical moment seemed to sit well poetically. The serious contenders numbered 10, and the strongest piece in this section was a subtle one-liner:

last light the colour in a falling leaf

I enjoyed the gentle observation here. The single line allows any ideas associated with any part of the poem to flow into and around each other. In what was to become the other Runner-Up, I valued the use of the word ‘rusty' which is imaginative and out of the ordinary, the very kind of search for original speech mentioned above:

autumn leaves -
the woodpigeon's
rusty call

It's a simple haiku but given elegance by that choice of word.

Another which stood out (Highly Commended) was:

two fantails
round my head -
the martyr's vow

This alludes to the vows of St Francis of Assisi. We are confident the poet will not harm the bird; at the same time, the birds form a halo around the human.
Whilst there was plenty to enjoy in this section, I did not yet feel I'd found something worthy of winning the competition.

I went on to the Primary and Intermediate section, where a similar process of selection saw a short-list of 44 haiku reduced to 20, then 15, then 10. As I read the poems aloud, there was one which brought tears to my eyes - that's the overall winner:

Earthquake
Santa's late

The tragedy this poem relates to can be read as a haiku or senryu (haiku about human nature). But we tend, I think, to see the event through the child's eyes. This Santa could be either parent. They might be late because of helping others in the aftermath of the earthquake, or delayed in traffic. Perhaps they simply can't afford presents this year, or, worst of all, they have been killed in the disaster. In the milder interpretation, the child's point of view can seem selfish, the child is wrapped up in their own desires, but, after the upheaval of the earthquake, they can be excused for wanting a little comfort. This haiku speaks of the reality of the situation rather than any external expectation. Naturally, we think of the Christchurch earthquake last September and we know that no one was killed at that time, but because the place and date are not named in the haiku - and don't need to be - it can be read in other contexts, including the tragedies of February 22nd.

Another haiku from this section moved me greatly:

Mother's day
the silence of wet grass

This piece was a close Runner-Up. Normally, we think of flowers and other gifts for mother's day, not wet grass and the possibility of the grave, so there's an unexpectedness to the work which matches the content.

Second runnner-up:

ocean
she dreams
the whole world

What pleased me most in this section was the great variety of both subject and technique in the first dozen or so haiku.

It was a privilege to judge this competition. Congratulations to the place-getters and to all who wrote of their experiences for us to share.

 

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