Editor's Choice, Cattails October 2017

I was honoured to receive an Editor's Choice award in Cattails, October 2017,  p. 56, for this poem:

her degree
in microbiology
from Nepal
how carefully she cleans 

hospital bathrooms 

This tanka by Hazel Hall brings up so many emotions. It is sad and poignant, heartfelt. It aches with unfulfilled dreams. Yet it is also full of simple pride. The poem contains so much dignity and self-respect. All of these feelings can be found in this tanka, but they are never stated. Hazel expertly shows these through action, word choice and structure. 

It is an unassuming tanka that says so much about resilience and cross-border qualifications. About how we see ourselves. How we see others. Through Hazel's words we can visualise this woman, feel her values, and be physically moved by her plight. 

Hazel has structured this tanka to include a very effective pivot in line 3. And the tanka builds, line by line, to paint a vivid scene where we can empathise with this woman. The tanka flows gently, is unhurried, careful to unfold in due course. Much like the careful and unhurried approach this woman has to her cleaning. She takes care not to rush, to ensure it is done to the best of her ability. How "carefully" she cleans because she understands the nature of infection through her education. How carefully Hazel structures her poem because she understands the sensibilities of tanka. 

This is another outstanding tanka from the current journal that will linger with each reading.

David Terelinck