My thanks to the poets who joined me in writing this renku:

Paddy White (PW)
wendy c bialek (WCB)
James Young (JY)
Robert Horrobin (RH)
Pat Geyer (PG)
Giddy Nielsen-Sweep (GNS)
Jonathan Roman (JR)
Nicky Gutierrez (NG)
Hemapriya Chellappan (HC)
Ian Speed (IS)
David J Kelly (DJK)
Craig Kittner (CK)
m shane pruett (MSP)
Dorothy Burrows (DB)
Bisshie (B)

beggar
palms up
facing the sun

PW

a passing dog
smells the soles of his shoes

B

immigrants’ dreams
in cement
standing

WCB

rain clouds gathering
no bed at the hostel

B

stone epitaphs
my tomb is bigger than yours
all are dead

JY

gargoyles grin
as they piss on the fallen

RH

seeing his breath
only the living can feel
the cold

RH

a ray of light
rage thaws the frost

B

moonlight calm
sets daylight frenzy…
dawn chorus

PG

butcherbird sings the morning in
I’m no longer alone

GNS

slow day
the peach tree blooms
in his cup

JR

the rhythm of coins
determines his future

B

the stars
unseen
this city night

NG

this windy darkness
a plastic bag floats even higher

HC

the moon
can’t reverse
a rising tide

IS

just before sunrise
he catches only one fish

B

pennywort
richer for a journey
on the river’s bank

DJK

drawn by the smoke
cops douse his cook fire

CK

overabundant
castaways in the mud
under bridges

CK

swept under tattered rugs
the problem hides in plain sight

MSP

through mist
heads together
a gleam

DB

the deafening sound
of silent protest

B