So, this year we jumped right in with writing haiku — I didn’t carve out the time to prep myself or anyone else!! — but I’ve been meaning to swing back around and talk about the form a little.

Haiku, as you know, is a traditional Japanese form that has been played with and differently understood over time and by different writers and teachers. I follow the (westernized) 5/7/5 syllabic pattern because I like working within a defined form as both a challenge and a freedom. (The freedom being that I don’t have to think about form — it exists already as a container. I just fill it up!)

There are also other distinctive elements of the haiku, including the kigo (a word that names, points to, or suggests a season) and the kireji (the turn or surprise part way through the poem). I try to stay mindful but not bound by the rules. This year, for example, I’m trying very much to allow for a turn between line 1 and 2 or line 2 and 3, but I’m not focusing on seasons because I’ve given myself these scientific process prompts.

Anyway, this is the point of a poetic license, I think. To know (and respect) the rules and traditions and then to use them to say what you want to say today….

Sensation
Haiku 10

The body reacts
as if to dots and dashes –
visceral Morse code

#lizsharespoems
#30daysofhaiku
#nationalpoetrymonth