Monday, December 19, 2016

Butterfly Dream: Summer's End Haiku by Alexey Andreev

English Original

summer's end
a sunflower bends over
the school fence

Honorable Mention, 2015 International Basho Award

Alexey Andreev


Chinese Translation (Traditional)

夏天結束
一朵向日葵花彎向
學校的圍牆

Chinese Translation (Simplified)

夏天结束
一朵向日葵花弯向
学校的围墙 


Bio Sketch

Alexey Andreev was born in Novgorod, Russia in 1971. He graduated from Leningrad State University with a math degree. In 1997, he created the first Russian haiku e-zine Haiku.ru. His awards include the Second Prize in the 1997 Mainichi Haiku Contest and First Prize in the 2013 AIHN Japan-Russia Haiku Contest.

2 comments:

  1. The seasonally significant and emotionally resonant juxtaposition of "summer's end" and "sunflower bend[ing] over the school fence" lifts the poem out of the ordinary, and the evocative closing image is laden with multiple meanings.

    Note: "Sunflowers are fast growers capable of reaching their maximum height in one season. All varieties of annual sunflowers (Helianthus annuum spp.) do their growing during one year. Depending upon variety, this can mean a plant that grows to just 2 feet or one that grows to 12 feet."

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