Pageant of Seasons

This is a collection of Japanese haiku written by an American poet Helen Chenoweth. The author has used a language that is all American in association, but very much enriched by her love for things Japanese. "Poetry in Japan is as universal as air. It is read by everybody, composed by almost everybody, irrespective of class and condition." This statement by Lafcadio Hearn deeply impressed Helen Chenoweth. In course of her comprehensive studies in the art of writing and teaching poetry, she became enchanted by the Japanese haiku, in which the subtlest meanings and feelings can be expressed in three short lines. Pageant of Seasons offers many lyrical haiku, some of which are centered around the Pacific Ocean. Other haiku show nature in all its facets of growing. These poems create a kaleidoscope of charming images and experiences to which each of us will attach his own meanings.