Raining Rengay

RAINING RENGAY – ISSUE SIX, October 2025

Guest Edited / Foreword by John Thompson (USA)

FOREWORD

Thank you, Sherry and Zoe, for inviting me to help you edit this issue of Raining Rengay. 

Here are a few things I especially like about rengay:

Rengay can provide an opportunity for multiple poets to be part of a poetic conversation on a specific theme. Writers learn to explore new perspectives, confronting issues that they might not have thought of if they were just writing alone.    

Rengay creates space for different voices and sensibilities to build something neither could create alone.  One poet might offer direct, grounded observation while another brings metaphysical questioning, yet they can create a unified emotional journey where different poetic sensibilities serve the same emotional truth. 

Natural editing – each poet’s contribution provides implicit feedback on pacing, tone, and development, making the collaborative process itself meaningful, rewarding and enriching.

Thank you also to all the wonderful poets published in Raining Rengay. It was a great privilege and joy to read your work!

— John Thompson, 2025-09- 22

CONTENT

(1) Enso Trek (Nicky Gutierrez, Antoinette Cheung & Garry Gay)

(2) chocolate, lemon, rose (Susanne Margono, Ingrid Bruck, Leslie McKay, 

Julie Naslund, Michael Peck & Dee Aubert) – a 6-person rengay

(3) How much light? (Lakshman Bulusu, Jackie Chou & Kathabela Wilson)

(4) One Note Song (Garry Gay, John Thompson & Sherry Grant)

(5) Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge (Jacob D. Salzer & Nicholas Klacsanzky)

(6) GEAR RATIO (Ignatius Fay, PhD (1950-2022) & Marcyn Del Clements)

(7) graffiti (Ce Rosenow & Harriot West)

(8) Kaleidoscope (Anne Curran) – a solo rengay

(9) Bean North Café (Lillian Nakamura Maguire, kjmunro, Charlotte Hrenchuk, Arlin McFarlane, Pamela Jeanne & Sandra St-Laurent)

(10) Picasso Orders Soup (a solo rengay by Alan Harvey)

(11) Revival (Sébastien Revon & Lakshmi Iyer)

(12) Canemah Bluff (Michael Dylan Welch, Jacob Salzer, Lisa Gerlits, Jonathan Went, Tanya McDonald & Ce Rosenow) – a 6-person rengay

(13) Sands (Lee Hudspeth, Jackie Chou & Kathabela Wilson)

(14) Musically Inclined (Kathleen Tice & Richard Tice)

(15) Whispering Woods (Damayanthi Ambepitiya, Asanka Iraj Laknatha, Vimuth De Silva, Sarojini Perera, Ramya Attanayake, and Radhika De Silva) – a 6-person rengay

(16) Small Town Grab (Delise Elmers & Karen Morris-Denby)

(17) Feasting with Shakespeare (Barbara Eaton and Wilda Morris)

(18) Gold Zenith (Melissa Lemay & Lakshman Bulusu)

(19) Bird Place of Aviation (Four Seasons of Birding) (Nancy Brady) – a solo rengay

(20) picking up the pieces (Keith Sherman and Roger Noons)

(21) Avian Reggae (Alan Harvey & Sherry Grant)

(22) Bugged Out (Jill Spealman & Garry Gay)

(23) Fruit Passion (Kathabela Wilson, Lakshman Bulusu & Anne Curran)

(24) The First Chronicle (Uchechukwu Onyedikam & Christina Chin)

(25) Silent Spring (Karen Morris-Denby & Radhika De Silva)

(26) Promenade to Poinsettias (Nancy Brady & Alan Harvey)

(27) August  Afternoon (Roger Noons & Ros Woolner)

(28) Forestation (Christina Chin & Jerome Berglund)

(29) The Chase (Ron C. Moss & Zoe Grant)

(30) Essay “Six of the Best – A Rengay Experience“ (Ron C. Moss)

Image Credit:

(1) Image by Karsten Paulick from Pixabay

(2) Image from Rashmee Roshan Lall

(3) Image by Kolímprint from Pixabay

(4) Image by hartono subagio from Pixabay

(5) Image by Roger Noons of a War Memorial at Stresa, Lake Garda, Italy

(6) Image by MIGUEL ANGEL CASTELAN from Pixabay

Enso Trek

by Nicky Gutierrez, Antoinette Cheung & Garry Gay (all from USA)

stepping into
the haiku trail
bubbling creek

our heels sink
into the damp earth

fallen tree
the crow
seems to be laughing

the musk
of last year’s foliage

a bend in the path
the smooth feel
of a new bench

dappled sunlight
flute through the woods

---

chocolate, lemon, rose

a 6-person rengay by Susanne Margono (USA), Ingrid Bruck (USA), Leslie McKay (NZ), Julie Naslund (USA), Michael Peck (USA) & Dee Aubert (Switzerland)

calcium deposits
on aging clay pots
timeless geraniums

against the farmhouse window
red blossoms pressing the glass

scent at dusk
inner city window box
taking flowers

lobed leaves 
fragrant in auntie’s garden
lemon, rose, chocolate

dirt brown fingernails
grasp well used garden tools

naked tattooed man
waters balcony blooms shocking
pink geraniums

How much light?

by  Lakshman Bulusu, Jackie Chou & Kathabela Wilson (all from USA)

moonlit night
my pen takes
control of my mind

sparkling mountains
faces behind lit windows

falling asleep
while I read aloud
a thousand stars

silver shimmers
along the horizon of my eyes

clouds
around Andromeda
a nebulous dream

the sudden clarity
of finding my milky way

---

One Note Song

by Garry Gay (USA), John Thompson (USA) & Sherry Grant (NZ)

trying to remember
how my mother
sang in church

balanced on a reed
wren’s one-note song

a break
from fine drizzle
rainbow chorus

sway of willow
a jazzy rain patters
on sill and pane

the kitten’s new collar
with its tiny bell

stirring sugar
into my earl grey
the vinyl skips

---

Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge

by Jacob D. Salzer & Nicholas Klacsanzky (both from USA)

a field of green
the lingering taste
of matcha tea

a fern-covered roof catches
the red-wing blackbird’s song

two friends chatting
between oak trees
the scent of moss

hanging out
with a bushtit nest
witch’s hair

premature birth
the thud of a green acorn

thick grasses
the sparrow dives
into another world

GEAR RATIO

by Ignatius Fay (Canada) & ​Marcyn Del Clements (USA)

hints of spring
forcing too hard
he strips the bolt

​pigtails flying
brand new pair of roller skates

second year
removing training wheels
from her first bike

​ her first car
​’72 Malibu
​“José La Bomba”

the half-ton comes
with the 80 acre farm

​head under the hood
​looking for that loose bolt
​grandkids interrupt​​

---

graffiti

by Ce Rosenow & Harriot West (both from USA)

a night of riots
bonfire ash
blows in the wind

  that song
i can’t stop singing

election results
adding more dollars
to the swear jar

recycling day
the bin full of last week’s 
headlines

fresh graffiti
on the memorial bench

daybreak
rinse
and repeat

---

Kaleidoscope

a solo rengay by Anne Curran (NZ)

rainbow stripes
on his sweatshirt –
washing line

flying home
to green pastures

smiling staff wear
pink sweatshirts –
anti-bully day

his cream fur
with splashes of gray

inside the house
shades of green – 
her eyes too

the Black Ferns win
in black and white

---

Bean North Café

a 6-person rengay by Lillian Nakamura Maguire, kjmunro, Charlotte Hrenchuk, Arlin McFarlane, Pamela Jeanne & Sandra St-Laurent (all from Canada)

lemon oatmeal cookies
melt in my mouth
luring me back            

not enough summer
for the sunflowers

buzzing
around the garden
poets

gum stuck under the table
writer’s block

instant coffee
this barista knows
my favourite

autumn rain
sharing stories to keep warm

---

Picasso Orders Soup 

a solo rengay by Alan Harvey (USA)

using a baguette
Dali cuts his steak into
bite-sized pieces

O’Keefe grazes birdlike
while building mesas

Nighthawk on the menu –
Hooper’s favorite
24-hour diner

Chagall’s wedding –
catered by his Russian
village goat

Hiroshige dines on
Tokaido sweet potato soup

chisels out a morsel
from a block of cheese
. . . Michelangelo

Revival

by Sébastien Revon (Ireland) & Lakshmi Iyer (India)

dawn at last –
even the coffee
is exhausted           

sometimes few things
stay etched year long

still carving hearts
on the meadow’s oak –
childhood love      

another autumn –
we connect our roots
with ancestral rites

our memories passing on
to the next generation

tall peepul tree –
gathering gossip
from village folks

---

Canemah Bluff

a 6-person rengay by Michael Dylan Welch, Jacob Salzer, Lisa Gerlits, Jonathan Went, Tanya McDonald & Ce Rosenow (all from USA)

licorice fern trail—
a brown creeper darts
to the bottom of a fir 

thoughts of you
the blur of a hummingbird

self heal
I spot a towhee
in the underbrush

goldfinch passing
reminds me of grandmother

 song sparrow song—
the one who’s always absent
from group photos

trail’s end
the juncos disappear

---

Sands

by Lee Hudspeth, Jackie Chou & Kathabela Wilson (all from USA)

filled with stars
an hourglass
keeping time

nightfall
the weight of my eyelids

looking in
through the window
the same old owl

taking flight
a rumbling jumbo jet

shape-shifting
the dance
of starlings

becomes
a meteor shower

---

Musically Inclined

by Kathleen Tice & Richard Tice (both from USA)

round and round we go
beginners’ cross-country
skiing course

the dancers’ laughter—
ashes, ashes, we all fall down

listening to music . . .
you in your chair, me in mine
in our Shangri-La

broken throne—
nothing on my tongue
but hallelujah

ain’t no sunshine . . .
only snow on rhododendrons

summer breeze
makes me feel fine
dental drill

Note:
(1) Songs in order: Rihanna, “Stay”; “Ring around the Rosie”; Mark Knopfler and Emilylou Harris, “Our Shangra-La”; Leonard Cohen, “Hallelujah”; Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”; Seals and Crofts, “Summer Breeze”
(2) “the dancer’s laughter—” is adapted from a haiku in Counting Stars (2022), and “ain’t no sunshine” is adapted from a haiku in Kingfisher.

---

Whispering Woods

a 6-person rengay by Damayanthi Ambepitiya, Asanka Iraj Laknatha, Vimuth De Silva, Sarojini Perera, Ramya Attanayake, and Radhika De Silva (all from Sri Lanka)

forgotten lantanas
still blooming in the old path
wandering in hedges

a dropped letter on the track
 picking up memories

 shoes scuffed by gravel
calls unanswered
sunset paints silence

babblers whisper 
in the woods

spring dawn
 scented drizzle
 down lovers’ lane

 buzzing bees
giggles of young couples

Small Town Grab

by Delise Elmers & Karen Morris-Denby (Kazz) (both from NZ)

one block
three families 
security in numbers

world news
fill small letterboxes

sun shines
on young faces
parent devotion

angels float
darkened corridors
graveyard shift

daily planes
cross two worlds

heritage windows smash
skyline changes
history soon forgotten

---

Feasting with Shakespeare

by Barbara Eaton and Wilda Morris (both from USA)

dost thou think,
because thou art virtuous,
there shall be no more cakes and ale?

it’s pastry I crave—
with dates and quinces

who cares for ale?
bring on the cakes
coffeecake, cupcakes, birthday cake

if drink and sugar be a fault
God help the wicked
and rain down potatoes

I’ll burn some sack
and roast a wild boar whole

climb a wall into the garden
and pick some salat
for this hot day

---

Gold Zenith

by Melissa Lemay & Lakshman Bulusu (both from USA)

steady whirring
song of the electric fan
as I fall asleep

sipping iced tea
sparkles in my eyes

in a dream I stir
under a blanket of
humidity

I feel you coming 
floating on the waves
as the tides lace my feet

early morning fog
gently caresses my face

aroma of ripe mangoes
one fruit to another
daydreams

---

Bird Place of Aviation (Four Seasons of Birding)

a solo rengay by Nancy Brady (USA)

January thaw…
bald eagles’ talons entangle
in mating ritual

the trills
of red-winged blackbirds

migrating warblers return
to nest
Lake Erie

the egret’s shadow scatters
minnows
summer sunset

cormorants spread wings
to dry

autumn afternoon
the belted kingfisher spears
a frog

---

picking up the pieces

an ekphrastic rengay by Keith Sherman and Roger Noons (both from UK)

disposable
weary men and mules 
conscripts both

lacking courage of a conchie 
wishes he’d been an ambulance driver

harder still
picking up the pieces 
lives torn apart

thirty years on 
grandma still speaks of him 
his photo on the wall

home or not 
nothing could ever be the same

world for heroes 
run for those with power 
and influence

** photograph below by Roger Noons of a War Memorial at Stresa, Lake Garda, Italy

Avian Reggae

by Alan Harvey (USA) and Sherry Grant (NZ)

fugue
at morning light —
juncos animate

kokako duet
fills the air

from the porch
. . . dissonance
of crows on the line

bush walk
here and there
flitting fantails

adagio of the old growth
and the hoot of an owl

   night vision
face to face
with a kiwi

---

Bugged Out

by Jill Spealman & Garry Gay (both from USA)

monarch butterflies
are due back at any moment
where is the milkweed

dragonfly first one
to explore the pond

the dreaded ants
emerge just before Easter
guard the eggs

daytime cricket
deep in the grass
putting off mowing

cicada sings solo
well into the dog days

a dandelion seed
caught
in a spider web

---

Fruit Passion

by Kathabela Wilson (USA), Lakshman Bulusu (USA) & Anne Curran (NZ)

cutting
brown spots of the pear
sweetness inside

aroma of ripe mangoes    I live moment by moment

Golden Queen peaches
the preserving jars
still warm

spoons of passionfruit right down to the rind

early morning
picking strawberries
my heart with her

crescent moon – 
apples from a neighbour’s tree

---

The First Chronicle

by Uchechukwu Onyedikam (Nigeria) & Christina Chin (Malaysia)

hailstone rain
on the white covered
hill

strumming busking 
for tips and food

groaning belly
through its vocal cords
yellow trumpet

homeless puppies 
sleep on stacked 
corrugated boxes

a concrete overpass
shelters the man

an army of fireflies
swarm the treetops
in knee high swamp

---

Silent Spring

by Karen Morris-Denby (NZ) & Radhika De Silva (Sri Lanka)

scarecrow
no ears to hear
morning birdsong

a raven hops
on the straw hat

tractor chugs
muddy rows
making tracks

green paddy
sways in the wind
eclipse of moths

toxins float
market day looms

protest march
‘say no to poison’
‘say no to poison’

Promenade to Poinsettias

by Nancy Brady & Alan Harvey (both from USA)

wildflower walk…
the first snowdrops
of the season   

trilliums spread and multiply
beautiful woodland carpet

goldfinches hide
in plain sight
–sunflowers

romanticizing 
the old West – Indian paintbrush 
dyes the meadow   

mums on the lapels
of the homecoming court 

color spectrum
reaches to the heavens  ̶ 
vibrant cosmos

---

August  Afternoon

by Roger Noons & Ros Woolner (both from UK)

sun splash 
a green-veined white hovers
over lavatera leaf  

patch of nettles by the fence
caterpillar habitat

salvia in planters 
provide privacy for visitors 
to bird bath

a squirrel stretches
from apple tree branch
to peanut feeder

leaves yellowing on the stems
first blush on tomatoes

sudden shower
homemade gooseberry jam
on toast

---

Forestation

by Christina Chin (Malaysia) & Jerome Berglund (USA)

dawn aurora 
through the branches 
gossamer rays

fundamental things
chelicerae

flying squirrels 
the lithe acrobat 
on pine nut

beaming 
defiantly
sings the delta

san kancils romp 
the rainforest

amidst 
the feathergrass
unremarked

---

The Chase

by Ron C. Moss (Australia) & Zoe Grant (NZ)

milking time
the cow shed cat
sits up for cream

sheep chases
the shepherd

Doris the pig
snorts at the door
for breakfast

 music box
a pony spinning
after its tail

a feisty gander attacks
Mother’s bare legs

blue heeler
a screaming
mailman

---

RENGAY ESSAY by Ron C. Moss

Six of the Best – A Rengay Experience

Recently Sherry Grant asked me to write a short note about my experience in writing rengay and I was happy to jot down a few thoughts on the amazing form.

I first started writing rengay in the early 2000’s and apart from another way of honing the skills of writing haiku, it gave me a wonderful opportunity to write, and collaborate with the wonderful worldwide community of poets. At last count I have written hundreds of rengay with over 50 poets and enjoyed the process immensely. I continue to write and publish rengay continuously and it forms part of my daily practice to keep that haiku mind that brings such a keen attention to the world around us.

There have been many highlights of publication, competitions wins, judging and special projects like the Ancient Bloodlines e-book with Simon Hanson, which I know has inspired many people to take up this wonderful form. But the real reward comes with the interaction with so many generous people. The give and take that is needed, along with the sensitivity to respect another poet’s voice, is essential. Also having a shared goal to produce the very best that one can and respect the process with no shortcuts.

Since Garry Gay developed the form it has grown worldwide and is published in leading journals both in print and online. Working with the form is a lovely way to hone one’s craft of haiku expression and when I look back in my own work, there have been many WOW moments for my partners and me.

If I could give some advice to writing rengay, it would be to strive for well-crafted verses that look to link and shift, but stay with theme or sub-themes, that can be recognised by the reader. A good title that lightly suggests the theme and has a relationship with each verse is ideal, although some like to use a title that has not been used in the rengay itself.

There are also variations that I have worked on, like using artwork with the rengay and even creating short slideshow films with spoken words and music.

Also multiple rengay that connect in a theme like a trilogy I once worked with.

You are only limited by your willingness to try new things and your creativity to make them happen. One of my joys was writing with Sherry’s very talented daughter Zoe. The experience allowed me to go back to that beginner’s child-like mind and play with the form with a willingness to learn and explore, that children do so naturally.

May your own journey in rengay give you much joy and expand your world of writing in the haiku form, and bring you many friendships with like-minded people. A big thanks to Sherry and Zoe for their fantastic support of rengay through their various activities and in particular Raining Rengay!

Warm wishes and peace,

Ron C. Moss

Tasmania, Australia

25/9/2025

---

AFTERWORD

by Sherry Grant 2025-09-23

There are many people Zoe and I would like to thank for making this issue possible, especially the patience of our first RR guest editor John Thompson, and the amazing poets who submitted from all over the world. We hope that you have enjoyed reading this selection and you are welcome to leave us comments. Raining Rengay now has ongoing submission period, however, to make editing easier, we prefer getting your previously unpublished rengay sent to us in the email early (translation to another language is also welcome), and we do not send out rejection letters because all poets are encouraged to resubmit any rengay that was not published the first time it is submitted! We will continue to invite different guest editors whenever possible, and would love for haiku and rengay poets to join us at our biannual online International Rengay Gatherings (IRG) and the annual Rengay Birthday Readings so we can all have lots of fun writing and reading rengay together! For the next/9th IRG on 12 Oct 2025, Zoe and I have invited the inventor of rengay Garry Gay (USA) to be the guest speaker again. RSVP to rainingrengay@gmail and we look forward to seeing more of you there to write together! Also for the next week or two Zoe and I will be busy judging the 10th Anniversary MHP (My Haiku Pond) Haikai Contest at the invitation of Michael Smeer (the Netherlands) and we are looking forward to seeing all our talented poets collaborating and having fun writing together, like playing chamber music with words…