giant Pikachu
floats above the skyline
Thanksgiving Day Parade

Danielle Mohrbach

the balloon handlers
drop the ropes
Garfield takes flight

Rob Spurling

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

Hannah Gifford

hands clasped
we circle the table
heads bowed

Danielle Mohrbach

the balloon handlers
drop the ropes
Garfield takes flight

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

top quarter champion

TOP half Chamption

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

bottom quarter champion

realizing
we're growing up—
he strokes his beard

realizing
we're growing up—
he strokes his beard

Grandma sleeps
as the television
shadows her face

realizing
we're growing up—
he strokes his beard

Seth Harshman

cousin drinks beer
underage
my parents upset

Morgan Ewald

Grandma sleeps
as the television
shadows her face

Danielle Davis

grandmother
cooking everyone
their favorite dish

Hannah Gifford

TOP half champion

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

CHAMPION

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

BOTTOM half champion

texas hold 'em
around the table
one beer

Geoffrey Eggleston

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

Hannah Gifford

brisk fog
in the empty darkness
I exhale deeply

Ryan Fraedrich

Thanksgiving morning
I roll back over
into another world

Seth Harshman

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

brisk fog
in the empty darkness
I exhale deeply

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

top quarter champion

BOTTOM half champion

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

bottom quarter champion

I fake another laugh
at a bad joke . . .
mom brings out pie

I fake another laugh
at a bad joke . . .
mom brings out pie

laughter
soon gives way to brooding
politics

I fake another laugh
at a bad joke . . .
mom brings out pie

Seth Harshman

thanksgiving dinner
no family
no fighting

James Farris

the family
all together
to discuss politics

Rob Spurling

laughter
soon gives way to brooding
politics

Jarred Leeper

giant Pikachu
floats above the skyline
Thanksgiving Day Parade

Danielle Mohrbach

the balloon handlers
drop the ropes
Garfield takes flight

Rob Spurling

kitchen wall
little hands
leaving turkeys

Hannah Gifford

grandmother
cooking everyone
their favorite dish

Hannah Gifford

I love the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Every year, I have the TV turned to NBC at 9:00 on Thanksgiving morning to watch the performers, floats, and crowds. It has become a family tradition to watch the parade, and I like how predictable the telecast is. The Today Show anchors always host the telecast, and since I watch the Today Show every morning, I feel like they are family. I love seeing the big balloons coming down the street, and these haiku reflect the different generations of balloon characters. For the people of my generation who grew up with Pokemon, Pikachu is a familiar face. For those who are a little older, they might not be familiar with this Japanese creation, but many of them recognize Garfield. I imagine the horror on people’s faces when Garfield starts ascending toward the sky. That would be interesting to watch on TV! Jarred

The Thanksgiving Day Parade is special to this holiday, and I like how both authors decided to write about it. The parade is full of blown-up characters, each bringing a special part to the parade. The first haiku describes the experience of this parade, making it seem like they are an observer on the street. It describes the parade, possibly from a child's eyes considering the Pikachu. The second describes when something goes wrong. I really enjoyed the opposite viewpoints both speaking about the same holiday spectacle. Hannah

The nationally televised Thanksgiving Day Parade is one of the coolest annual televised events, probably second to the ball dropping for the New Year. Since both of these haiku are obviously about the Thanksgiving Day Parade, they are already a good matched pair. Furthermore, they are both very well written and easy to picture. I like how the first haiku puts the floating Pikachu above the skyline. Although that is an exaggeration, it probably seems to be legitimate when you are on the ground at the parade. Regardless, it is a very impressive sight, and Pikachu is an awesome giant balloon. I like the second one, because you know all the balloon handlers would probably freak out in that situation, realizing they messed up big time. But, the crowd and viewers across the United States would think it was awesome to see a giant Garfield flying through New York City. I also like how both of these are Thanksgiving haiku without talking about eating food, relaxing, or sleeping. They’re both original and entertaining. Seth

I chose these two haiku to match together because they both referenced the kitchen (or brought about the idea of a kitchen) and the age differences of the haiku seem to make a commentary on the kitchen as a source of life, passing on memories to the younger generation, and togetherness. The two together make it feel like everyone is in their right place in this scene in the kitchen. James

realizing
we're growing up—
he strokes his beard

Seth Harshman

cousin drinks beer
underage
my parents upset

Morgan Ewald

Grandma sleeps
as the television
shadows her face

Danielle Davis

grandmother
cooking everyone
their favorite dish

Hannah Gifford

I really liked these two because they reminded me of my family holiday parties. My parents were never ones to allow underage drinking, but it seemed like once I came home from college they were OK with me having a few drinks, but nothing major. And the second one I really liked because of its connection to me also. Now that I can grow a good 5 hair beard, it really seems like I am getting older, and I can actually have conversations with the adults at family parties. Austin B

I liked this pairing because it showed two sides of "growing up." On One side, the adult is looking at the people around him and realizing just how quickly time has passed. Whether the haiku is from the perspective of an adult looking at his children, or a child looking at the other children, it has the sad nostalgia of someone realizing that more time has passed that they were prepared for, and though they seem surprised about it, they seem willing to accept it. The other haiku seems like the opposite of this. Though the parents are clearly upset about the illegality of the cousin's actions, they also seem upset with the fact that the cousin would be drinking at all. It's as if they are unwilling to accept the fact that the cousin is growing up now, and the child they used to know is now suddenly old enough to be drinking. Skya

I think why I initially like this one is the first haiku. One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving is the post-meal nap. It is just so wonderful to sleep in a cozy, warm house due to all the relatives and food cooking. Also, my aunt makes me my favorite dish every year, it is not a traditional Thanksgiving food, but I love it. That dish is deviled eggs. They are just so good and colorful. I love their unique taste, and they go well with all of the other traditional food. The memories of this reminds me of my aunt, who is basically a grandma to me, since my grandma is dead and she is 15 years older than my mother. So both of these haiku connect directly to her for me. Ryan

texas hold 'em
around the table
one beer

Geoffrey Eggleston

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

Hannah Gifford

brisk fog
in the empty darkness
I exhale deeply

Ryan Fraedrich

Thanksgiving morning
I roll back over
into another world

Seth Harshman

My favorite matched pair was the one that linked “texas hold ‘em” with “family game night.” Although I usually favor more dark and brooding haiku, I loved these light-hearted haiku because they resonated with truth! My dad’s side of the family, with whom I’m extremely close, can’t get together without a game of Texas Hold ‘Em occurring. For years, we’ve celebrated birthdays, holidays, and everything else with a game of cards, which inevitably go on for hours. Still, some of my fondest memories have been made while coming together with my family in this way. I could also relate to the “family game night” haiku simply because I have an uncle who, for as long as I can remember, has been (mostly) lovingly referred to as Uncle Cuckoo. It’s an accurate moniker indeed. Danielle M

I fake another laugh
at a bad joke . . .
mom brings out pie

Seth Harshman

family game night
gone for a second . . .
partnered with the crazy uncle

Hannah Gifford

the family
all together
to discuss politics

Rob Spurling

laughter
soon gives way to brooding
politics

Jarred Leeper

This pair reminds me not of angry, family-splitting discussions I hear every Thanksgiving and other reunion. Instead, it reminds me of how very thankful I am that politics is almost never brought up in either side of my family. My father's side of the family is usually talking about sports, which I don't really get into but at least remains mostly friendly, with only joking competition between the different teams' fans. My mom's side of the family is absolutely enormous (60-80 people showed up just in the time I was at my aunt's house, and more came before and after) so they've taken to a very accepting, open-doors kind of policy. No one talks bad about the others, there are no little cliches, somehow this huge group manages to stay tight and perpetually friendly. In either case, I am blessed with discussion from issues like politics and religion, not because we stifle ourselves to get along, but because no one in my family really cares to talk about these issues anyway. It's always good to be reminded of what I have to be thankful for. Austin M