Five Tan-Renga Poems by Uchechukwu Onyedikam & Christina Chin

 

5 Tan-Renga Poems

Uchechukwu Onyedikam (italic)

Christina Chin (plain)

deep afrobeat 

from the nextdoor 

open and close

a shared wall thins

to a drumskin

the devotees’ worship 

with an alignment  

beaded blue

each blue sphere 

a captive storm

the dance

of Agbogho Mmuo

raising earth

the clay itself 

to dust

village vigilance 

what goes around 

Èṣù

crossroads

the messenger smiles

after the downpour 

in large numbers 

akụ

the soil’s green  

counts in yams

Christina Chin is a painter and haiku poet from Malaysia. She is a four-time recipient of top 100 in the mDAC Summit Contests, exhibited at the Palo Alto Art Center, California. 1st prize winner of the 34th Annual Cherry Blossom Sakura Festival 2020 Haiku Contest. 1st prize winner in the 8th Setouchi Matsuyama 2019 Photohaiku Contest. She has been published in numerous journals, multilingual journals, and anthologies, including Japan's prestigious monthly Haikukai Magazine.

Uchechukwu Onyedikam is a Nigerian creative artist based in Lagos, Nigeria.  His poems have appeared in Amsterdam Quarterly, Brittle Paper, Poetic Africa, Hood Communists, The Hooghly Review, and in print anthologies.  Christina Chin and he have co-published Pouring Light on the Hills (2022)

Four Tan-Renga Poems by Paul Callus & Christina Chin - Collaboration

 

Four Tan-Renga Poems by Paul Callus & Christina Chin - Collaboration

stumbling—

clearly a bourbon 

haze

a one-night stand fails to rise

to expectations

Christina Chin (Malaysia) / Paul Callus (Malta)

bird deterrent 

holographic tapes twirl

round the plum tree

a lively breeze

my main accomplice 

Christina Chin (Malaysia) / Paul Callus (Malta)

tree of life

Indian mandala

hanging on the wall

finding peace 

in the symmetry

Paul Callus (Malta) / Christina Chin (Malaysia)

finding a balance

between old and new

vinyl resurgence

the jukebox spins

Elvis from the 50s

Paul Callus (Malta) / Christina Chin (Malaysia)

Paul Callus was born in Ħal Safi, Malta. He is married to Sheila née Ackland-Snow and they have two children. He is a retired teacher, and has been active in the literary field for around 50 years. He has published three books, and has had several short stories and poems published in various magazines, anthologies and online sites. His preferred writing mediums are Maltese and English. He is also a proof reader and translator.

Christina Chin is a painter and haiku poet from Malaysia. She is a four-time recipient of top 100 in the mDAC Summit Contests, exhibited at the Palo Alto Art Center, California. 1st prize winner of the 34th Annual Cherry Blossom Sakura Festival 2020 Haiku Contest. 1st prize winner in the 8th Setouchi Matsuyama 2019 Photohaiku Contest. She has been published in numerous journals, multilingual journals, and anthologies, including Japan's prestigious monthly Haikukai Magazine.

3 Tan-renga Poems - Collaboration by Karen O'Leary and Paul Callus

 

3 Tan-renga Poems - Collaboration by Karen O'Leary and Paul Callus

intangible

the daily gifts

that spice up my life

an origami butterfly

from a friend

 

Paul Callus, Ħal Safi, Malta

Karen O’Leary, West Fargo, North Dakota, USA  

proudly exhibited

in grandma’s showcase

cracked blue porcelain

each plate carries

its own history

 

Paul Callus, Ħal Safi, Malta

Karen O’Leary, West Fargo, North Dakota, USA  

landing on Boardwalk                                              

with one hotel –

bankrupt

another failed

entrepreneur

Karen O’Leary, West Fargo, North Dakota, USA

Paul Callus, Ħal Safi, Malta

Paul Callus was born in Ħal Safi, Malta. He is married to Sheila née Ackland-Snow and they have two children. He is a retired teacher, and has been active in the literary field for around 50 years. He has published three books, and has had several short stories and poems published in various magazines, anthologies and online sites. His preferred writing mediums are Maltese and English. He is also a proof reader and translator.

Karen O’Leary is a writer and editor from West Fargo, ND. She has published poetry, short stories, and articles in a variety of venues including, Hedgerow, Tipton Poetry Review, Frogpond, Setu, Fine Lines, Atlas Poetica and Quill & Parchment. Karen edited an international online journal called Whispers http://whispersinthewind333.blogspot.com/ for 5 ½ years. She enjoys sharing the gift of words.