one dozen haiku
by strannikov
five is not the time
and the front door is no place
to be loquacious.
soft clouds at sunset,
half a moon fighting for life--
house exhales garlic.
strumming on the pipe
blowing into the guitar
drumming on the horn.
poetry is steak:
in the center always rare,
even served well-done.
strength has its own source:
steel's not as strong as silver
nor so near the moon.
not as if he weren't
listening but as if he
were deaf, couldn't hear.
whale gets sliced and flayed:
propellers unforgiving,
spilled guts float for sharks.
for tonight's dessert,
the core of Newton's apple
--how appetizing!
virus beats my head:
face swollen, ears burning, throat
raw: a simple cold.
long before he lands
ev'ry Icarus in flight
sees the ground approach.
when I see the rain
and hear it pour through gutters,
I can smell the earth.
devils you do know:
mephisto-sophisticates
and the Fausts they own.
it's okay to weep:
afterwards, once it's grown late,
your bones learn to dry.
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Author's Note
Some inevitably handle juxtaposition better than others, sigh alas alack.
Other stories by strannikov
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long before he lands
ev'ry Icarus in flight
sees the ground approach.
when I see the rain
and hear it pour through gutters,
I can smell the earth.
devils you do know:
mephisto-sophisticates
and the Fausts they own.
a nice dozen but these three especially.
I agree completely with Gary, which may seem lazy of me, but I really did try to find a couple I liked better than those three. *
A great set, Edward. I like.
Very good.
Great set! Especially the three Gary and Mathew mentioned, yes, and also the first two, and the one about silver and the moon, and the last one. I like that they're traditional, (which seems to be failing out of fashion?). Cool how you saved that 7 syllable line by contracting every to ev'ry, which also adds an interesting voice to the line.
*****
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(By "traditional" I meant the structure: Three lines, 5/7/5 syllables.)
My eyes tumble over the sets too easily, unable to pick a favorite trio of lines from the rest. *
Thought I'd revisit. Two in particular- the rain and gutters ... half a moon and garlic - remind me of Yosa Buson. Good.
My favorite:
it's okay to weep:
afterwards, once it's grown late,
your bones learn to dry
*
"it's okay to weep:
afterwards, once it's grown late,
your bones learn to dry."
****
*
Gary has a good eye.
I like the last one too.