BHS SPRING GATHERING, SATURDAY 10 JUNE 2017 11 AM – 5 PM
ST DENYS HALL, CHURCH STREET, CHISWICK
This year the Spring Gathering of the BHS took place in the St. Denys Hall which is close to the River Thames in Chiswick. There were three parts to the day:
(1) Haiku Today
In the morning session we had a series of lively discussions about some commonly used statements regarding haiku. This exercise, as one might expect, led to the expression of the differing points of view which exist within the society regarding the nature of haiku.
The group then took part in a simulated editing exercise in which two or three haiku had to be selected for publication from the ten which had been submitted. Interestingly, given the divergence of opinion in the first exercise, there was a more general agreement on the haiku which should be published.
(2) Ginko
We were fortunate in having a sunny afternoon for the ginko (a haiku-writing wander around the riverside area of old Chiswick Parish Church). When we returned we shared and discussed the haiku that had been produced.
Here are some of the haiku which were written on the ginko:
incoming tide
river lapping against
the slipway
— David Bingham
tide rising
the constant bob
of each moored boat
— Andrew Shimield
polling day fades
two pigeons
share a snog
— David Jacobs
river trash
trapped between the owner
and the dog
— Rose Ades
Beached house boats
side by side
wallow in the mud
— Howard Colyer
summer breeze
combing the river
ripple by ripple
— Debbie Antebi
Chiswick Park
on the wind
African wedding music
— Kate B Hall
riverbank garden
gone to wilderness except
daylilies
— Susan Lee Kerr
a crucifix stands apart
mobile phones rise and fall
“I do”, she replies
— Mark Floyer
old cemetery
each gravestone set
at a jaunty angle
— Frank Williams
splashes of colour
wild flowers
the artist’s grave
— Mark Gilfillan 
(3) Speed Renga
The day finished with a fast-paced, swap-around burst of shared haiku creativity.
Format for all, devised by Frank Williams, is Format: v1 spring, v2 love, v3 summer, v4 autumn or moon, v5 winter, v6 spring. The idea for Speed Renga was devised by David Bingham and Dick Pettit. The conductor was Susan Lee Kerr. The premise is sociable group poetry writing, with the added ‘speed’ element of changing places so that the working groups change and poets get to work together and get to know each other in this fun, fast creativity.
Here is the renga voted favourite by those who participated:
“The Sixth Ice Cream “
hey you, wind
stop tossing and tangling
my plum blossom tree
blown from my hand
the love poem you sent me
at the beach
dad staggers back
with five ice creams
wrestling with nightmares
the full moon awakens me
fairy lights
each one a different colour
on the bare branches
chimes of goldfinches
drowned out by wrens
— Susan Lee Kerr, David Bingham, Frank Williams, Debbi Antebi, Rose Ades, Rose Ades
Overall, it was a splendid day and much enjoyed by all those who attended. Afterwards we adjourned to a local hostelry for a relaxing drink.
Write-up by Dave Bingham and Susan Lee Kerr