While I knew that many rules about haiku are rules of thumb rather than definite requirements, I thought that poems in haiku form must have 3 lines. Then I wrote a 2-line haiku. While I was not the first to write a 2-line haiku, I may have been the first to write one prompted by a glance at a doorknob.
Category: haiga
Rise & Shine
Awning. Window frame.
Sunlight flows between and forms
arrow head on drape.
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Sunny Day at Niagara Falls
Wet thunder booms as
water sweeps itself away.
A rainbow lingers.
Photo of Iguazu Falls © Marcio Chagas | Unsplash
(Image has been cropped.)
My haiku was inspired by the contrast between loud rushing water and a silent steady rainbow, as pondered by Boris Glikman in a prose poem about a visit to Niagara Falls. The contrast cried out to be displayed in the kind of deliberate swerve common in haiku poetry, often between the middle and final lines.
I wrote the haiku, searched for an appropriate image to make a haiga, and was happy to see a hover caption (on one of the Unsplash pages linking to the photo used here) that placed the photo at Niagara Falls. I am grateful to Andrew Porteus for noticing that it’s really at Iguazu Falls and providing a much needed adjustment to the photo credit when posting the haiga to the Niagara Falls Poetry Project.
My blunder reminds me of my one point of agreement with Ronald Reagan and a great meme:
Meme as posted by Troll Quotes on Pinterest
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Sharing More than Light
Slow shutter needed.
Daffodil and tulip share
early morning light.
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There is enough for us all,
if we take less than we want.
Light ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #319
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Shells on a Sandy Beach
A crab lived and died.
Empty claws and carapace
sing an elegy.
Photo © Patrick Jennings | Carapace and Claw
Click on the link in the photo credit to read the photographer’s own poem inspired by the fine image.
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Mountain Laurel
Coming soon:
pink nectar chalice,
bumblebee.
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Start the day with a triple espresso? The bee did but I didn’t. While shooting laurel blooms in soft light, I was distracted by the hyperkinetic bee. Neglected to force quick shutter speeds when tracking it. (The camera chose 1/200 of a second.) Got one shot with blurred legs but an in-focus tongue, just as the bee was landing. Otherwise, a blurry bee was mooning me. That’s life. Enjoy the good stuff and cope with the rest.
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Tulip Continuity
Flowers wilt;
leaves still make food. Why?
For next year.
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Memorial Day Colors
Lavender salutes
red, white, and blue of our flag.
Pride and gratitude.
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Fish Story
School of metal fish
gleams in natural light and
never stops swimming.
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Crocus & Pachysandra in 3-5-3
Golden glow
with purple and green.
Spring returns.
Golden ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #306
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Alpine Rainbow
Smooth arc floats above
landscape clad in greens and gray.
Jagged peaks endure.
Photo © biletskiy | 123RF Stock Photo
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Mourning Dove in Winter
Above and On the Beach
~ My response to a CDHK challenge for a tan renga based on a Jane Reichhold haiku harks back to the often-quoted opening lines of a William Blake poem. ~
Raise and Look
Glass mug of black tea.
Behold the liquid’s color:
radiant amber.
Amber~ Pic and a Word Challenge #299
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Geometry of Hope
The CDHK challenge [Carpe Diem Haiku Kai #1856: Restarting?] laments the nasty strife of the past 2+ years but finds a glimmer of hope in a haiga where the image is a superb sunrise photo. My response is another haiga, with 2 haiku and another visual metaphor.
Foaming at the Mask
~ Thought I was on a roll after I revised a copy of a previous post for a new challenge. Then I relearned a valuable old lesson. The hard way? Of course. ~
Mellow Curmudgeon 