Global Haiku • Fall 2015
Dr. Randy Brooks

Life Out of the Grey

by
Aundrea Marsh

Author's Introduction

Whether it was drawing, writing, or singing the arts have always been my form of escape. I sang from the time I could talk. Since the time I learned to hold a pencil, I was always doodling pictures. The same can be said for me as a writer. I was always making elaborate stories in my head. As a child, I competed twice in the Illinois Young Author's Competition. I always believed I was best at short story/novella writing. During high school, I enrolled in a creative writing course taught by Mr. Roy Roberts. This is where I began my immersion into poetry. I tried my hand at writing haiku for my final chapbook, including:

The embers burn black.
The ice slowly fades away.
I fall into dreams.

Hear the hooves beating,
I can hear the wind blowing.
Can you feel my heart?

Cold reins in my hands.
Which road do I take?
I think I'll choose . . .

The haiku I wrote then were of the typical 5-7-5 scheme taught in common American English courses. As time progressed, I almost hated haiku and the restrictions the genre represented. As an option for my honors courses at Millikin University, I enrolled in Global Haiku taught by Dr. Randy Brooks. My short semester in the course opened my eyes to the actual freedom of writing haiku. I suddenly found myself making little haiku in my head wherever I went, no matter what I was doing. This has been an exciting new view on the genre that I hope to continue to read, write, and enjoy in the future.

"Life Out of the Grey" is my collection of haiku written during this semester. The collection is the account of my life events beginning May 2015 and continuing into the future. The story begins with the focus on my sadness after a falling out with one of my best friends, who I also had romantic feelings for. After this, we attempted to keep talking, but it was simply too painful for me. I tried to spend the rest of my summer doing what made me happy, mainly riding my horse and spending time in nature. As the summer closed and I returned to Millikin for the new semester, I was completely lost in my own life. Life has a way of taking care of things on its own. A friend of a friend came into my life, and I fell faster than I could have ever imagined. It may have been fast, but love has no timeline. Haiku about him composes most of this collection, "Life Out of the Grey" meaning the beauty I have found in love and life since he came into my story. The "story" continues beyond the present, into our inevitable separation for graduate schools, and life together. My life has never been so filled with color and warmth. I hope that this collection shares some of those feelings with you, as a reader, as well.

Aundrea Marsh
Taylorville, IL

Thank you to my family, friends, and my amazing boyfriend for reading my haiku, offering your thoughts, and supporting me endlessly in my writing endeavors. I love you all so much .~Aundrea

crackling radio—
you find
my favorite song

rushing to class
strands of hay
tangled in my hair

my grandmother's roses
between his mother's carnations—
a family affair

bare trees
I stop looking
for love

knotted pine boards
the sunlight makes
your eyes gleam

cottage in the woods
falling in love with
the way you make PBJs

talking about everything
and nothing—
we watch the stars

invisible patterns
traced onto my back
fireworks

holding me close
I see 10 years ahead
little blonde curls

moonlit shadows
our first kiss
. . . finally.

low lit screen
even in your sleep
I want to kiss you

parking lot
you leave me
breathless

packing away
my shorts
summertime sadness

sunshine on the dash
gravel road dust
coats my guitar

your bare chest—
home is where
the heart is

the band on stage
forgotten—
balcony kiss

promising to return
for Christmas too
—hugging mother

another starless night
the owl nests
alone

skin to skin—
leaving little
galaxies on you