Comments from the haiku contest judge, David McMurray.

The photographer shared 5 images of Matsuyama with haikuists located around the world. He tempted poets to interpret the universal significance of what he placed in the viewfinder. 722 haiku were inspired.

The Excellence Award is granted to Sheila K. Barksdale in Gainesville, Florida, USA for her haiku that was inspired by a photograph of driftwood on a beach.

driftwood:
the way an old dog settles his chin
on your knee

The haikuist metaphorically responded to the photo by balancing the forces of drifting and settling. The keyword driftwood takes on wider resonance when one thinks of where the piece of wood may have come from, its journey, the action of the favorable winds and waves that carried it to the northern seashore of the small island of Aijima. Likening the shape of the log to a dog, she joins with the photographer in focusing on the quiet warmth of the lives of a handful of island residents who have built small yet comfortable homes, adopted pets and planted gardens. The timeworn log that has finally come to rest ashore, in the same way as man’s faithful best friend comfort each other. The Excellence Award comes with a 30,000 yen gift coupon and special locally produced handicrafts from Matsuyama.

The 3 prize winning poems skillfully juxtapose images. The color of sunset mixes with the fruity flavors of rice wine that Deb Koen dreams of drinking in the Matsuyama airport lounge. Having given up traveling, Yukiko Yamada dreams of going on a bicycle trip again; the way she used to do as a young woman. Peng Liu imagines himself a pirate on the high seas, but in reality as a landlubber, he realizes he must swab the floors of a restaurant kitchen.

Honorable mentions selected by David McMurray for their creative merit and are also worthy of publishing.

Congratulations go to all the haikuists from around the world who contributed to the success of the 4th Matsuyama Setouchi Photo Haiku Competition co-hosted by the Asahi Culture Center in Osaka and The Asahi Shimbun in Tokyo.