Here we are, opening a new chapter in the story of Upstate
Dim Sum. Through most of last year, we were uncertain of
how we might continue to reach our readers. Maintenance
of a print format seemed out of reach at first, but we did
find a way at the last minute. We then had to put the word
out to you and, despite the short notice, your response was
quick and overwhelmingly positive. Thank you, so much!

You may note that this issue contains no new poems from
Yu Chang. We remain hopeful that this will change for the
better in the future. Even though Yu has been unable to at-
tend our monthly sessions for nearly two years, we still see
him as a vital participant in our group and hope that more
of his poems will be coming our way, and your way, soon.

Our guest for this issue is Debbie Strange. Her most recent
full-length haiku collection, Random Blue Sparks (Snapshot
Press, 2024), received third place in the Haiku Society of
America’s 2025 Merit Book Awards, and was shortlisted for
a Touchstone Distinguished Books Award. In Tom Clausen’s
words, this book “is a compelling love letter to the prairies,
mountains and waters of the western provinces of Canada.”

js

Sample Poems

someone’s mitten
frozen to the slough
fallow fields

Debbie Strange

spring rain
the new life
of mud

js

with child
the moon inside
a halo

sy

how birds hear it
basswood leaves
in the river breeze

ms

just visiting
their grave
those clouds

tc

going home
I return a perfect stone
to the waves

sb