Wilma Erwin: 1936–1995

Portland, Oregon

May 23, 1936 – November 27, 1995

The following unattributed announcement appeared in Woodnotes #27, Winter 1995, page 4.

       swimming away

the carp carries daylight

            on its back

             —Nine Steps, Mountain Gate Press, 1994

Wilma Erwin was enthusiastic about every aspect of haiku. Her work with the Western World Haiku Society; her role as organizer of numerous haiku workshops, meetings, and readings; and her gift as a haiku poet and as author of Nine Steps: A Japanese Garden in the Fog [see a short review], coauthored with Brad Wolthers, continuously demonstrated not only her love of writing haiku but her love of sharing it with others. Wilma’s passion for haiku will long be remembered by those who have read her work, and most especially by those who have written with her, read with her, taught with her, and who came to know first-hand the generosity of her haiku spirit.

warmer days—

in the deep shadows

first butterfly

—HI (Haiku International), No. 12, 1994

a koi’s tail

soon the pond’s surface

is still again

—The Pointed Circle (Portland Community College, Cascade Campus), Vol. 11, 1995

gathering moss—

tiny hand print

in cement

—Frogpond XVIII: 3, Autumn 1995

estate sale—

last time on the line

her fine linen

—Woodnotes #25, Summer 1995

Two poems from Nine Steps:

lowering fog

we stray from one path

and find another

windless day

the duck and its reflection

drift toward shore