The Sound Of Water

ISBN: 978-1-903947-24-3Published by Charnwood Arts - February 2009

The Sound Of WaterA Haiku Poetry Project

By The People Of Thurmaston

with Paul Conneallyand Charnwood Arts

a frog leaps inwater's sound

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)

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Paul Conneally me Iptor Richard Thornton and Ian Baine;us5 the project.

Richard Thornton Sculpture is based in Harby, north of Newark.Having completed a wide range of commissions, Richard andhis team have considerable experience of project managementand consultancy.They are used to working with communitiesand multi-disciplinary project teams to achieve positiveoutcomes. Richard is also an active member of The Royal BritishSociety of Sculptors.richard@richardthorntonsculpture.co.uk

Paul Conneally is a haiku poet and artist based in Loughborough.He works with schools and communities all overthe UKencouraging people to make poetry. He is the artistic directorof the Haikumania Project at Virginia Tech.

littleoniom@sooslemail.com

There are fragments of haiku poems on the benches in the playground areaand on the wall-piece sculptures... Can you find them?!

What we did at the first session - February 8th.

At the first meeting a mixture of local adults and school childrenfrom Eastfield Primary School met at Elizabeth Park CommunityCentre.

Haiku poet, Paul Conneally, led the session and explained thatmany haiku contain two parts - a 'fragment'and a'phrase'.Thefragment makes one line (first orthird) and the phrase is splitover two lines.

Some haiku poems follow a special syllable count pattern butnot all of them do. Each haiku poet has their own style.

We went outside to gather ideas for our fragments and phrases.

On this particular day there was a lot of snow on the ground.The snow on the roads had turned slushy and we could hearthesound of traffic scything through the slush. Around us were thefirst glimpses of spring.

The group returned inside and worked with Paul to write up theirnotes.

We then read out the haiku in the traditional way. Haiku are readout slowly, savouring every syllable and then repeated.

ice slippery ice a yellow primrosesnow turning to water wrapped in snowas it falls the holly tree

JadeWells-Larter Sue Lewis

^

What is a haiku?

old pond...a frog leaps in

water's sound-•--•

furuikeyakawazu tobikomu

mizu nooto

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)

This is one of the best known poems in the Japanese language.

It's a haiku.It was written by Matsuo Basho, probably the most famous writer ofhaiku ever.

A Haiku Poet is called a Haijinin Japanese. A Haijin whoreaches the highest level andhas many students or disciplesis called a 'Haiku Master'.

Other Haiku Masters include:Yosa Buson (1716-1784)

Koyabayashi Issa (1762-1826)MasoakaShiki (1867-1902)

Takahama Kyoshi (1874-1959)

The following pages document haiku writing sessions and'Haiku Hikes' undertaken by the people of Thurmaston.

leaves falla lady walks pasthumming

Sachin Kantilal

cold airat the back of my throatbare trees

ZakCooper

moving treesgrass frozenlike snow

birds are singingin the cold frosty morningseeds on the ground

Billy Smith Tom Challenger

1O

snowflakes floatingwater spraying from speeding carsmaking tracks on the blanket

indentationsin the soft snowanimals and people

pedestrian bridgegoing nowherepeople going everywhere

solitary footstepsone by one passing byblack on white

red againstthe white and greya brick chimney

Hilary Billings

Karen Millard

crunchy coldlots of flakesfalling from god

Scarlett Henson

red berriesclingingtotheir branchthorns as neighbours

cars brakeon the slippery snowtracks on tar

Ben

jack frost has called bylittle fingersfreezing in the cold

Mimi Henson

black glovetransient snowflake starsblowing

park playgroundthe freshly fa lien snowhides broken glass

new housesthe development spreads intoexisting lives

Brenda Seaton

Sue Lewis

snow spins downinto the rushing traffica sting of coldness

Jemma Bagley

bridge over trafficcars buses and lorriestoot and shout

wet branchesthe bowling greencovered in snow

Rosemary Hill

11

16

18

waterrunningto nowherethe old corner shop

tumblingtearspounding froth roarsover concrete

Jennifer Harris

subterranean passagerude wordshigh and low

river soarunder and over,to the sea

Hilary Billings

rushing watertouching oncethen gone

old agea gnarled and leaningtree trunk

the skyin a puddlespotted with raindrops

empty windowswet brown leaveslying in the mud

diggers everywherestuck in the mudhouses for sale

where the footpathand byway meetsan old mattress

the Soar flowssouth to norththe weir east to west

we are allwet and muddycane furniture

Rosemary Hill

bluebellsthe weight of rainon their shoulders

a communitya concretejunglehiding from the trollies

cars every wheremucky water flyingoff the wheels

Mimi Henderson

an uncared for boatin the watery gloombeautiful blossoms

Hilary Billings

NJO

is piece of creat i

Thurmaston.We pass a yard and peer over and through a wooden fence.

The name 'Saddingtons' Fuels' is painted onto the side of a corrugatedmetal lorry container. Peeling, distressed and neglected.

Saddingtons used to move furniture as well.

Shoemakers' hovels, a wall is being carefully rebuilt using old bricks.Using the old to rebuild for new inhabitants.

The old school housethat looks too tiny to house a school.The year 1911 is marked on the wall.

Up to Cross Street.Old granite kerbstones, next to modern concrete ones.

- A house, moved brick by brick from Melton Road.Where Old Hall Close's wall continues under the ivy.

Down to the river path, concrete and soil lies in lumpy piles.

Up to Johnson's Bridge and over to the weir. The sound of rushing water

vay, high water had bought litter downriver. Today, therehe weir or tangled into the banks.

Vater geese ;Fishermen sit \

We emerge onto Mill Lane, an unadopted -road. No-one cuts back the foliage. Agrass area and a car park where the fishermen and visitors stop to visit Watermead.

est Avenue back onto the lane.We pass decaying houseboats.

We progress to Melton Road and our journey ends atThe Harrow pub, where we rest and enjoy a drink. ,

amework knitter's house.

Across the road to St John The Evangelist, an island of rock.

:anal Street was a row of cottages.

On the site of a medieval hall, like a Guildhall. A farmmentioned in the Domesday Book . Now Old Hall Close,modern houses.

red tileslittle brick streets

hide secrets

Sue Lewis

trees swayin the bright sunshine

cold air

Katie

outwoodswater bubbles past

spring flowers

Mimi Henderson

I love watercanals are part

of living life

Margaret

the cemetery signstands tall and black

yew trees

Rosemary Hill

a resting placewhere squirrels playmum and dad asleep

Jennifer Harris

a magpieviewing the worldfrom a house roof

Jean Bradshaw

bare branchesdancing in an ice cold wind

blue sky

Josh Hadfield

26

Rain On My HatThurmaston Carnival 2007

The carnival was held at Elizabeth Park on a very rainy Saturday inJune. Despite this the turn out was good.The theme was'Pirates'and many joined in by dressing the part, including Paul Conneallyas'Captain Haiku'.He mingled with the crowd both inside and out, talking to themand writing down their ideas. He also devised a giant word searchbased on haiku fragments and phrases which was set up in theSports Hall alongside an exhibition of photographs of the Sound OfWater project.This word search can be seen on pages 12 and 13 ofthis book.

What follows are the haiku poems and photographs gathered onthe day.

wine or waterthe sun shinesbehind the clouds

Sachin Kantilal

really wet daya stall sellingIndian food

Rosemary Hill

nothing comesif I were outsideI'd be inspired

HuseinJamaly

carnivalwe stray from our journeyin the rain

Andrew Walker

young and olda communityat its best

John and Dave

rain on my hatmorris dancerspreparing to dance

Roxy

loud musica man in ragsbanginga drum

Mick Pipie

wonderful turnoutthe morris dancers go onafter eastfield school

Brenda Seaton

wet and happypeople enjoying themselvesat the stalls

Derek Chapman

ice-cream wagona posh blokewith a bear in his hands

Pam Ashford

rain on my handsmy children enjoy themselveson the roundabout

Sarah Ashford

treasure chest of sweetschildren dressed as piratesdodge the rain

Lynn West wood

too busyto write poemsa boy with a balloon

Barbara Richardson

two coppersin bright green jacketschildren havingfun

Peter Lee

33

Thurmaston Action Group was formed in 2002.TAG are volunteerswho meet monthly, usually at The Old School, Melton Road, on aWednesday. Forfurther information and confirmation of the dateand time of the next meeting please contact:

i —^ Gerry Bowman, Chair 01162200511inC3rouP Brenda Seaton,Treasurer 01162127686

Charnwood Arts is an independent community artsand media organisation based in Loughborough. It isa registered arts and educational charity (No. 505977).

www.charnwoodarts.com 01509821035 or contactJemma Bagley: jemmab@charnwood-arts.org.uk

Charnwood Arts would like to thank the people of Thurmaston fortaking part in this project and the following for their support:

The developers Metropolitan and Mansellfor the grant they gave us to getthis project started and for theuse of the site map on page 3. JSf.!™

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Charnwood Borough Council forCharnwood the arts development grant which

-^ enabled us to publish this book.

LeicestershireCounty Council'

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Photo credits:Jemma Bagley for the workshop pictures and views of Thurmaston- Brenda Seaton for the photos on page 32 - Richard Thornton for use ofthe photos on page sand use of the wall-piece motif. AlsothankyoutoSue Lewis for the river drawing used throughout the book.

Print liaison Sue Witts