The posthumous book, Navigating Moons by Brendon Kent (February 1, 1958–February 24, 2024) is out. Below are commentaries on three poems from the collection by our three editors. Also, at the end of the post, there is information on how to obtain a copy of Navigating Moons.
every moon out of my hands stardust i return to
Commentary: It has been said that we are made of stardust. In this monoku, the late haiku poet Brendon Kent returns to the Great Mystery of the cosmos and relinquishes personal attachments. It seems “every moon out of my hands” shows humility, as he sees what is beyond us. As another interpretation, “out of my hands” could speak of the poet’s own co-creation of the universe he was (and still is) a part of. When I think of stardust, I think of the essence of life, and traces of a life, still giving light. This is a memorable and important haiku that speaks of the poet’s spirit and the afterlife.
between this world and the next butterfly echoes
Commentary: The overall imagery of this haiku is about the transience of life, revolving around deep experiences that make things so subtle at the end that one feels nothing but emptiness. Butterfly echoes are a reminder of the transformation of life (both within and outside) that runs in an endless circle. So, we are constantly moving between life and death as nothing is permanent here. As Rumi says:
“You don’t live on Earth—you are passing through it.”
— Hifsa Ashraf
so much to say
in so little time!
spring daffodils
Commentary: In light of Brendon’s impending passing due to cancer when this haiku was written, it takes on a mixture of despair and a hint of joy. I believe Brendon realized his life was like spring daffodils: brilliant, bright, and beautiful, but only around for a short time. And indeed, spring daffodils say so much without words. The poet could have been feeling restrained in speech and action due to his cancer and felt he could only be like the daffodils in his communication. One of his last efforts to communicate his message was writing Navigating Moons—a window into not only a cancer journey but also a man of humanity and introspection.
— Nicholas Klacsanzky
Dear haiku friends,
The posthumous ebook by Brendon Kent entitled “Navigating Moons — poems of a cancer journey” is now available.
It contains Brendon’s final published and unpublished haiku, senryu, and more. Much of the book is illustrated with sumi-e or sumi-e-like drawings.
The ebook is available as a PDF file for a donation of 5 euros or higher. Brendon has requested all proceeds to go to Macmillan Cancer Support (an official UK charity).
Your orders can now be emailed to navmoonsbook@gmail.com after making your donation. The subject line should read: “Navigating Moons order.” In response, you will receive an email from us containing the direct link to download the ebook (PDF file).
Donations for UK residents: https://donation.macmillan.org.uk/
We recommend selecting the option to donate in memory of Brendon Kent.
Donations for non-UK residents: www.justgiving.com/macmillan
Other options for non-UK residents are to phone in a donation at +44 207 091 2235.
For further options, check https://www.macmillan.org.uk/donate/how-to-donate or email fundraising@macmillan.org.uk.
A Kindle version of the ebook will be available from Amazon in the future.
Thanks for your support and we hope you’ll enjoy reading it.
Best wishes on Brendon’s behalf.