A Postcard from Ocean City(haibun) — originally published in Contemporary Haibun Online 18.3 republished in Contemporary Haibun 18 (2023)
⬥ Winner (one of thirty) out of 1562 entries, 5th Basho-an International English Haiku Competition, 2023
spring melt the moons rise in all the low places
⬥Honorable Mention, Dwarf Stars Award, held by the Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association (2023):
diameter pi the lake solves for moon — originally published in Frogpond 45:3 (2022)
2022
⬥ Semifinalist, Ito En "Art of Haiku" New Haiku Grand Prix, August 2022 no matter how it ends a bluebird’s song
⬥Winner (one of multiple haiku featured), Neighborhood Haiku, Lexington Council of the Arts (artfully painted on the storefront window of a wellness store in Lexington Center, July 2022)
finding myself where I least expect puddle moon
⬥Nominee, Dwarf Stars Award, held by the Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association (2022):
moonscape not only / but also mountains (Frogpond 44:3; 2021)
⬥Winner, Haiku Newton (1 of 20 poems displayed in Newton, Massachusetts public parks; spring-summer 2022)
⬥Third Place, Connecticut Poetry Award(2016) for free verse poem "Skin". Judge's commentary: "This poem is remarkable for its stunning use of imagery...But beyond the poem's aesthetic qualities is something tangible to hold."
Skin
it is my ambassador to the world my hot, my feel, my here but not there
an inexact barrier, heat and sweat like a muddled language seeping through
if I wore a different skin would you still know it is me?
it is recognizable enough – a fancy façade for the shy self within
without it, I might not realize my perimeters or whether I am part of everything else
why do we need to be so distinct? it must not be that important
for what skin is worn in the land of souls? what use is a costume when the pageant is over?
I dream of pure beings in butterfly bliss intermingling like soft flames
what was once contained in a fragile glass will be made free as water
when we drop these worn garments I will still know it is you
as we reach the latent truths of ourselves and fall together, sure as gravity, shapeless as stars