Heading to Sherkin this month?

As you’re wandering the island’s idyllic lanes and exploring the sandy beaches, keep an eye out for a colourful surprise fluttering in the summer breeze.

A trail of haiku poems now appears all over the island’s hedgerows, fence posts and gateways.

The Haiku Trail, a celebration of the popular short-form poem, marks the launch of the Sherkin Island Haiku group’s fourth collection of poetry.

‘Light Between Seasons – a year of Haiku poetry from Sherkin Island’ features edited threads of haiku and the lively quips of conversations that flowed between group members via WhatsApp during Covid lockdown over a twelve-month period from September 2020 to August 2021.

“Like all of our poetry collections to date, ‘Light Between Seasons’ has been an absolute labour of love for all involved and we are very grateful for the support of Sherkin Island Development Society,” said Tess Leak.

“We are delighted to give all of the proceeds from the book this year to help fund the purchase of Sherkin Island’s former National School building and garden to create a ‘Neart’ Hub for the island community.”

The fundraising target is €80K to cover the purchase, after which a decision will be made by the community regarding its upgrade, development, and future use as a hub for diverse use such as educational, heritage or cultural activities.

To celebrate the new book, members of the group will be outside of The Community Hall on Sherkin Island on Thursday, August 4th from 1pm-3pm inviting members of the public to write a haiku poem. It’s a free event and all are welcome to join in, write a haiku and then add it to the trail throughout the island.

A limited number of books are available from €15 including P&P from sherkinisland.ie.