drifting hammock sigh
through the pine needles
comes light

Taylor Hagerdorn (4)

weary traveler
. . . a day spent on the playground
deserves a night's sleep

Daniel Rausch (8)

open field
just me, paco
and our frisbee

Deja Finley (5)

time to type again
my pinky finger
on the S key

Alec Campbell (2)

the lake
bones on fire
my only escape

Alexandria Wilson (3)

silence in my room
has been replaced
by another’s steady breathing

Brandi DeLeonardo (8)

This haiku is another that creates a clear image in my head. It brings back the memory of the first night back at school, when the sound of another set of lungs seems alien and weird. I remember how the sound of my roommate's breathing that first night sounded unnaturally, deafeningly loud, when really, it was very quiet. This haiku really captures that moment, that snapshot of discomfort before getting used to sharing a room again. Natalie

This haiku is one of my favorites mainly because it completely describes transitioning from being at home in a room by yourself to living with another person in a dorm room. Having someone live with you is such a different experience from having a room to yourself especially concerning privacy. This little poem gives me a clear view of residing with and around someone else even though the haiku only talks about night and sleep. Danna

sweat-soaked shirt
broken fan
pas de bourree

Alexandria Wilson (8)

here’s the scoop
waffle cones
nice and cool

lying down
erasing the pale spots
front side then flip

dew line on forehead
my hand on your back damp shirt
blaring horns, guitars

Taylor Hagerdorn

Within this haiku, I was brought to one of my favorites memories of my adult life. I absolutely love concerts and music shows, and this really reminded me of most of the "concerts" (whether they were in halls or in basements of houses) that I have been to over my lifetime. I can just imagine myself standing at my very first rock concert last October, and, despite the weather being cold, there was a great sense of warmth that radiated throughout the House of Blues. I just see the simplicity and divinity in this haiku, and that's what makes it special. Jonathan

sitting in a library
pages turn
music blaring from headphones

at the surface
hot water
cold down below

a cool shower
iced drinks
a date with the pool

moving in
sticky t-shirts inhibit
hugs

Danna Herbach (3)

swimming all day
time flies
where did the sun go

moonrise
shadow hearts
a personal swan song

she folds his ties
as she always does
but not for him

Erin O'Brien (11)

This was my favorite poem in kukai. The reason I liked it so much is because it holds so many implications, and has such a serious air to it. It could mean that she is trying to create a normalcy where there is none at this point in their lives maybe because of a divorce occurring at this moment in time. I could be that the husband sets off her OCD by not keeping a neat enough drawer, and she is doing this because she needs to see it this way. Maybe the husband died and she is doing this because every time she opens the drawer, she looks at them, then sets them back neatly the way they were, the way he had them, she wants something to feel normal. Brandi

gentle guitar
in the distance
a street band

Erin O'Brien (5)

bone chilling night
snowflakes falling
on our tongues

open fields
empty sky
everything breathes

Trista Smith (7)

I like this haiku because of the idea of everything breathing. I have a field in my backyard and I imagine walking my dog in the field and looking up at the sky. I really enjoy seeing an open blue sky on a bright day because it’s so full of life and energy. With the line “everything breathes”, I imagine a soft breeze.  It causes all of the plants to blow slightly and it seems like everything is breathing. The biggest image I saw in this haiku was large trees moving in the wind and the leaves rustling and showing the breathing movement. Erin

flashlight beams
dance across the sand
sea turtle hatchlings

Mackenzie Peck (8)

cracking of the ice
the stream
comes back to life

Mackenzie Peck (8)

I enjoyed this haiku very much. When I read this for the first time during kukai, it made me feel like I was ready to take on this new school year. During the winter season, the rivers and lakes all freeze over and it feels like there is a standstill. Once there are beginning signs of spring, however, there is almost a different feeling in the air. When the thin ice cracks on the stream, I felt like I could break old habits and begin to work on bettering myself for the upcoming year. Although this haiku is quite simple, it spoke to me; the feeling is very calming after I read this person's haiku. Daniel

the sun also rises
even when I
fail to hear the call

Jonathan Rieck (11)

Out of all the great haiku in the Kukai, I connected to this one the most. I love any kind of writing and art that involves sunrises and sunsets. The sun fascinates me in ways I can never describe and if I can stare at a sunrise and/or sunset every day, I think I would. I have a tattoo that reads "And life doesn't stop for anybody," and this haiku immediately reminded me of my ink. To me, it means that no matter what life throws at you or how many times you've been knocked down, tomorrow is a new day. It is a new start for successes and failures. Even if I feel like a bad day equals the end of the world, the sun reminds me that it is not! Valina

summer knees
bent in keen inspection
tadpoles plankton minnows

Jonathan Rieck (6)

Jonathan has a phenomenal voice. Reading this brought awareness back to my childlike wonder. I absolutely love water and critters and creatures of all kinds. This haiku represents my summer and every other season since I was born. It sits like humid heat; it stretches like a soft smile; it explains casually the things people never take the time to explain. This haiku is the fragment of life that isn't only seen, but it meant to be felt. It represents a moment of intimacy between the owner of those knees and the nature they are inspecting keenly. Taylor

dark clouds

running uncovered
where are all the people?

Alexandria Wilson (2)

mid-afternoon wednesday
cartwheels
on the tickling grass

standing back to back
five years and half an inch apart
when did he grow up?

Natalie Zelman (9)

This was my favorite from the kukai because it reminded me when I first
came home after being at school for the first time for a long period of
time and seeing that my sister was the same height as me now. She is a
senior in high school and it baffles me that she will soon be graduating
and going off to college to begin her new path in life. I still see her as
the little sister who followed me around but she grown into a young lady. Makayla

the view from the tops of mountains in debt of something priceless

Jonathan Rieck (5)

Twister
right foot red
from the blazing sun

Erin O'Brien (7)

When I read this poem, I imagined a group of friends outside playing twister in the middle of the day in July. There are only two boys left in the game and the “game host” calls out “right foot red.” The two children lift up their feet and the younger boy looks down at his foot and sees it blaring red. He goes to put his foot down on red, but he scrapes his foot against his right arm and yelps in pain. He falls over and the older boy is declared the winner of the game. Olivia

move-in day
Beatles on the radio
for three hours

Natalie Zelman (6)

big kids versus little
the water balloons do nothing
to cool the blacktop's heat

june eighteenth
the birthday candles
add to the heat

fresh raked hay
large round bales
a sudden rain

Sara Siegfried

I am not sure who wrote this haiku, but I really like it. It reminds me of my grandparents' farm in Pennsylvania. My siblings and I used to visit there every summer, and this haiku brings back those memories for me. I can smell the fresh, grassy smell of harvested hay on baling days, and I can smell the dried hay smell of the old barn at the end of the driveway. I remember feeling the muggy air of the Pennsylvania summer, and looking towards the darkening clouds on the horizon. My siblings and I used to play in the old empty corncrib at the back of the property, making dishes for our make believe feast out of dirt, unripened apples and dried corn. At the first rumblings of thunder in the distance, we knew to begin cleaning things up and to start running back to the old farmhouse; the summer thunderstorms could become dangerous rather quickly. After the violence of the storm had passed, we would walk out onto the front porch of the house and sit on the porch swing, watching the rain and inhaling the scent of wet earth and hay. Mackenzie

fireflies strung across the back porch light up the party

Olivia Cuff (5)

wing brushes
of the cricket
summer symphony

beads of sweat
checking under leaves
for cucumbers

Natalie Zelman (5)

sun beating down
on me and my dog
a short walk

Rebecca Coutcher (2)

five hours in the car
doors opened
warm at last

Sara Siegfried (2)

I really liked this haiku and the memories it brought back of my family vacations in the spring and/or summer down to Florida. It was always nice once you got to Tennessee or Georgia because when we would stop at a gas station it would be all nice and warm with nice gentle breezes after waking up at five in the morning to 68 degree weather that was freezing at the time. This haiku really captures that family vacation memory for me and i am sure for others as well and I really enjoyed it. Allie

sets down the guitar
lights cig and grabs a whiskey
set list part two next

oceans apart
shallow waters
that once ran deep

Trista Smith (12)

First of all, I was super impressed that someone wrote this in our class. It sounds like a professional wrote it. Most of the students in our class are first time haiku writers, so I was surprised that such a deep haiku could come from one of my peers. When I first read this, I thought of a long distance relationship. A couple months had passed, and the flame just is not there anymore due to the miles between the couple. I could feel the hard emotions attached to this haiku. Longing, sadness, and regret are a few. I forgot who wrote this one, but great job. It is truly fabulous work. Rebecca

I love this Haiku! It says so much while saying so little. It reminds me of my friends from high school. We were the best of friends and we knew all of each other's secrets and struggles. You wouldn't see one of us without the other. After graduation, we all went to different colleges and sadly we barely talk at all any more. It seems like our relationships ran so deep when we were in close proximity with each other, but distance ruined us. This poem really hits home for me. Deja

The most striking thing about this haiku is that there are 3 different types of water that are being used in quick succession. Oceans, shallow waters, and then the assumed in between that used to be all work towards conveying the same message. It personally reminds me of when I was leaving for college how almost all of the relationships that I had with people were changing. I think this was especially powerful in haiku class because many of us had experienced the same thing recently, but I feel this haiku was really well done and could be relatable to almost anyone. Alec

shorts
my legs stick
to my chair

Natalie Zelman

I really liked this Haiku because I can relate to what the author was writing about. I love summer and love wearing shorts however I do not look forward to getting up off a plastic chair. This haiku made me think of that awful debate of either getting up quickly or slowly getting up. I can see myself sitting in a classroom and having class over and jumping up only to have bright red thighs as a result of just standing up. This haiku, while very simple, writes about a very relatable situation that happens to almost every girl during the average summer. Sara

midnight
kick off the blankets
for cooling

Danna Herbach (3)

a comfortable nook
in the ancient tree
reading spot

Daniel Rausch (12)

Lake Michigan—
drowning my fears
one by one

Valina Hoang (6)

The first line sets a very clear image for me of the grey waters of Lake Michigan that stretch beyond what the eye can see. It's daunting
and humbling to think that this vast body of water isn't even an ocean but still a lake. Then the line 'drowning my fears' brings a certain heaviness to the haiku. There are many reasons people fear what they fear and facing these fears is one of the hardest things to do. The only way to overcome fears is to face them one by one as the haiku suggests. I imagine the person is scared of water is decided to face it once and for all using Lake Michigan. Trista

sleeping bags
plentiful amount of tents
stars twinkling

waterpark locker
my bare feet
burn like fire

shallow river
small pairs of footprints
in the muddy bank

Natalie Zelman (7)

Parliament in my knuckles
an overture of laughter
infinite night

Jonathan Rieck (4)

bronchioles strain
should have been
born a fish

Alec Campbell (6)