Robert Spiess
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ROBERT SPIESS (October 16, 1921 to March 13, 2002)
Robert Spiess published his first haiku in 1949, his first of
10 books in 1966. He was the editor of "Modern Haiku"
from 1978 until his death. "Spiess [held] to a steady level
of excellence." ("A Haiku Path," published by
The Haiku Society of America, 1994) In 1988, he was awarded HSA's
Special Recognition Award "for a profound, insightful book
about haiku" for his "New and Selected Speculations
on Haiku," (Modern Haiku Press, 1988). In 2000, he received
the prestigious Shiki Masaoka International Haiku Prize ("His
achievement in disseminating and deepening the understanding
of haiku in English-speaking countries is without parallel.")
His work (some as Rupert Spear) has appeared in many publications,
including "American Haiku," "Haiku West,"
"Brussels Sprout," "Cicada," "Dragonfly,"
"High/Coo," "Acorn," "Frogpond,"
"Modern Haiku," "Still" (England), "Tundra,"
"Woodnotes," "Hummingbird," "Southwest
Times Record," "American Poetry Magazine," "The
Beloit Poetry Journal," "Christian Science Monitor,"
"The Humanist," "Existaria," "Leanfrog,"
"Travel," "Mainichi Daily News" (Japan),
and "Windchimes." His work has also been selected for
books such as "The Haiku Anthology," "The Red
Moon Anthology," and "Favorite Haiku." His love
for haiku was obvious in all that he wrote about it. His legacy
to the haiku community is without measure.
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wild roses
tarrying beside one
touched by time |
Blue jays in the pines;
the northern river's ledges
cased with melting ice |
Patches of snow
mirrored in the flowing stream;
a long wedge of geese |
Asparagus bed
silent in the morning mist
the wild turkeys |
Winter moon;
a beaver lodge in the marsh,
mounded with snow |
the pines on
shore sway-
a mallard hen and ducklings
crest another wave |
an aging willow-
its image unsteady
in the flowing stream |
winter dusk-
as one, the chirping sparrows
fall silent in the spruce |
alone at the
stream . . .
a single cicada counterpoints
the silence |
the field's evening fog-
quietly the hound comes
to fetch me home |
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Author: Robert Spiess
Editor: Billie Wilson
Translator:
Credits
"wild roses": From "noddy," by Robert
Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 1997); selected for "The Red
Moon Anthology," (Red Moon Press, 1997); selected for "Favorite
Haiku" Vol. 3, H.F. Noyes (Red Moon Press, Pond Frog Editions,
2000)
"Blue jays in the pines": From "The Turtle's Ears,"
by Robert Spiess (Wells Printing Company, 1971); selected for
"The Haiku Anthology," edited by Cor van den Heuvel
(Norton, 1999)
"Patches of snow": From "The Turtle's Ears,"
by Robert Spiess (Wells Printing Company, 1971); selected for
"The Haiku Anthology," edited by Cor van den Heuvel
(Norton, 1999)
"Asparagus bed": From "The Shape of Water,"
by Robert Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 1982); selected for "The
Haiku Anthology," edited by Cor van den Heuvel (Norton,
1999)
"Winter moon":Published in "Haiku West,"
6:1 (1972); selected for "The Haiku Anthology," edited
by Cor van den Heuvel (Norton, 1999)
"the pines on shore sway": From Spiess Christmas Card
(1999); selected for "a glimpse of red: The Red Moon Anthology
of English-Language Haiku" (Red Moon Press, 2000)
"an aging willow": Slightly different version in "The
Shape of Water," by Robert Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 1982);
selected for "The Red Moon Anthology" (Red Moon Press,
1996)
"winter dusk": From "some sticks and pebbles,"
by Robert Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 2001)
"alone at the stream": From "some sticks and pebbles,"
by Robert Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 2001)
"the field's evening fog": From "The Cottage of
Wild Plum," by Robert Spiess (Modern Haiku Press, 1991)
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Revised .
Copyright © 2001 World Haiku Association.
All rights reserved.
All poetry the copyright of the author.
All translations the copyright of the translator.
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