CVHC From Year's End to Year's beginning....

     As Fall of 2015 deepened into Winter, and the holidays consumed the last of the year, the Central Valley Haiku Club was kept busy. 

     On Saturday, October 24th, with the sparkle of sun rays glinting off the waters that surround the Gekkeikan Sake Factory's meeting rooms, members Yvonne Cabalona, Mark Hollingsworth, Bill Owen, and Leslie Rose shared haiku, senryu, and haibun before a gracious audience of members,  friends and family members.  It was, as always, a lovely culmination to our months of writing.
    
     Then, as December arrived, we wrote "closed" to another Jerry Kilbride Memorial English-Language Haibun Contest.  The submissions were sent to the judges for their consideration.

     A funny thing happened on our way to our favorite "feeding trough" and the site of several years' worth of meetings...We arrived to celebrate our usual December holiday meeting, that marks the end of our year, to find that our restaurant had closed its doors.  In search of a place to gather, a nearby restaurant was chosen, but the din of diners and workers made visiting difficult.  We will definitely miss the Eastern Empire and are currently still searching for a meeting spot replacement.

     By January, the winners of our Haibun Contest had been chosen.  There were many commendable submissions, but, in the end, three entries caught and held our attention.  Two of the entries were given Second Place prizes each:  Sidney Bending for his comical "Soft Shoe" and Renee Owen for her poignant piece "Under the Sea".  First Place was awarded to Margaret Chula for her colorful and sensuous "Dusky Rose".  As Yvonne, our president, commented:  "There are stories and poems in each of us and every year we look forward to, and are appreciative of your submissions."  So we hope that this next year's contest will see more folks writing and submitting entries.

     As we enter February, we will be meeting for the first time in this New Year at the Gekkeikan Sake Factory in Folsom at 12:00 on Saturday, February 13th.  Should you be in our neighborhood, you are cordially invited to join us to share writings and laughter.

Respectfully submitted,
Leslie Rose
CVHC Secretary