kiss on the hand
no longer
strangers

Emily Sullins

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

Haley Vemmer

homeless man’s bench
one stranger stops
just to say hello

Logan Bader

at the drunk man’s feet
the old hound
laps up spilled beer

Haley Vemmer

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

at the drunk man’s feet
the old hound
laps up spilled beer

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

top quarter champion

TOP half Chamption

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

bottom quarter champion

pumpkin hands
the queen
has arrived

pumpkin hands
the queen
has arrived

running
down the lawn
ice cream truck

Sunday adventure
shooting dust bunnies
under the couch

Alissa Kanturek

pumpkin hands
the queen
has arrived

Mary Callaghan

running
down the lawn
ice cream truck

Emily Sullins

sunshine on a fall day
cars racing by
my quaint little street

Naomi Klingbeil

TOP half champion

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

CHAMPION
 

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

BOTTOM half champion

thinking through
every star I hopped
to get to you

Alissa Kanturek

driving home from work
today I choose
a different path

Isabella Spiritoso

your perfect smile
the only light
I need tonight

Hannah Haedike

the warmth of your love
lights up the night
a single flame

Sydney Rudny

driving home from work
today I choose
a different path

the warmth of your love
lights up the night
a single flame

driving home from work
today I choose
a different path

top quarter champion

BOTTOM half champion

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

bottom quarter champion

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

Christmas eve
one of the presents
barks

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

Mary Callaghan

gusty fall wind
inside
cocooned in a blanket

Alissa Kanturek

too many pillows—
i hold them in
your absence

Zachary McReynolds

Christmas eve
one of the presents
barks

Sophie Kibiger

kiss on the hand
no longer
strangers

Emily Sullins

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

Haley Vemmer

homeless man’s bench
one stranger stops
just to say hello

Logan Bader

at the drunk man’s feet
the old hound
laps up spilled beer

Haley Vemmer

We talked a bit in class about how both haikus in this match are about initiating contact with an animal. One of them might be a little safer than the other, but they are both pretty cute to me. Sully’s haiku makes me think of meeting a dog for the first time. I love dogs so I always want dogs to love me back, and a dog kissing your hand is so pure! I see the speaker meeting this dog and kneeling down to let it sniff their hand and then the dog gives it a kiss. Haley’s haiku makes me laugh. It is similar to Sully’s in the sense that both human subjects want to befriend the animals. Isabella Loutfi, Fall 2018

I like this matched pair because they both simultaneously create sad and sweet images. Each starts with something that might be dreary (a homeless man and a drunk man) then ends the haiku on an optimistic, sweet moment (a stranger saying hello and a dog enjoying some beer). They both pleasantly surprise the reader and turn a depressing image into a cheerful one. Rachel Pevehouse, Fall 2018

I enjoyed this match pair because they both involved an unexpected visitor that seems, in a way, to add a sort of softening comfort to each of the men. When I think of the companionship of a dog, I always think of how they always love humans the same, regardless of circumstance. They do not seem to propose bias to the sorts of humans that they enjoy being around, they rather trust all humans fully until they encounter a reason not to anymore. I think this is parallel with the stranger that stops to say hello to the homeless man in my own haiku. I think the homeless man did not expect to encounter companionship of the stranger that is different from him in terms of status, but the stranger is displaying affection to the homeless man, regardless of the external features of the homeless man. Like the dog, the stranger is only interested in providing pure companionship to someone who is alone. Logan Bader, Fall 2018

I like the kindness behind these haiku. Both of the first lines begin with a location that transports me directly to an imagined scene in my head. The haiku each have a man who is down on his luck. I imagine a homeless man in tattered clothing with an unshaven face and a village drunk who drowns his problems in alcohol. Little moments of kindness like saying hello and making a new friend can brighten one's day, and I imagine that happening here. The two men start their days miserable and depressed, but their spirits are uplifted by a stranger and a dog. Emily Sullins, Fall 2018

I like this matched pair because they both start with kind of a sad scene but transform into a sweet scene. Each haiku starts with someone who is going through a tough time in his life but ends with something that makes the reader smile: the stranger saying hello and the dog drinking beer. They also both portray a sense of comfort and companionship. The man in the first haiku receives assurance that he isn’t alone when the stranger greets him, while the man in the second haiku has his loyal dog sitting at his feet so he isn’t alone. Haley Vemmer, Fall 2018

stoned
he tries to cradle
the feral cat

Haley Vemmer

at the drunk man’s feet
the old hound
laps up spilled beer

Haley Vemmer

I really enjoyed these two haiku together because I think they both have to do with Mido’s idea of what a haiku should be. Mido declared that haiku should be an out of body, out of world experience, yet happening in the moment. Both of these haikus are about people who are in an altered state and discuss the actions they’re doing in hat direct moment in time. They also both have animals in them and I love animals so that made me happy as well. Also, I found it interesting how both haiku gave the state of mind first, almost how we usually set up normal haiku with a location or feeling – we, as readers, know where this person is in their state of mind and either can relate to them or put ourselves in their shoes, in an out-of-body experience. It’s the next part of the haiku where the animals come in and once again because of their altered state they’re attempting to do a failed action – i.e. trying to hold a feral cat that could scratch or hurt you and spilling beer as you’re attempting to drink It and then the dog cleaning up after you. I like these haikus together, for sure. Hannah Haedike, Fall 2018

These weren’t originally a pair from this document, but they ended up competing against one another and I thought they were a bit more fitting. While the matched set I write about below are also grungy, sad, and pathetic, this pair seem to embody a spark of life or humor amongst chaos. And they both just really make me giggle. Life is gross, and in no way perfect or innocent, as Kuro might suggest, but that doesn’t always mean life if tragedy. I don’t think Mido would ever mourn the fact that life is messy; he would rejoice in it. A little spontaneity and absurdity is what makes life enjoyable, and partaking in it is what makes a person a human. Alissa Kanturek, Fall 2018

I like these two together because they both deal with intoxicated interactions with animals. Both of these images are very interesting, and the authors do a good job of capturing a moment. The two haiku, however, have a very different mood to me. The first one is playful and whimsical, whereas the second is more melancholic and sad. Melanie Wilson, Fall 2018

I enjoyed this matched pair because they are both about substance use and animals. It was interesting to see them put up against each other because they were not originally matched, but they make a good match once they made it to the second round. In one, the focus of inebriation is the human, while in the other the focus is the animal becoming inebriated accidentally. They were also humorous to me, and I always enjoy a bit of humor in haiku. Zachary McReynolds, Fall 2018

Sunday adventure
shooting dust bunnies
under the couch

Alissa Kanturek

pumpkin hands
the queen
has arrived

Mary Callaghan

running
down the lawn
ice cream truck

Emily Sullins

sunshine on a fall day
cars racing by
my quaint little street

Naomi Klingbeil

This was my favorite pairing because I think that they have similar energies but placed in different seasons. Both give off happiness and peace, the first has a youthful and playful energy while the other is more mature yet still maintains a pure sort of joy that can be found in each respective season. They both have the movement of the cars/truck that gives them a forward momentum, although the second is much slower and relaxed. Hannah Ottenfeld, Fall 2018

I like these two poems as a matched pair because they both inspire a similar feeling in me. After reading the first poem, I feel nostalgic; I picture young children relaxing inside on a quiet day when they hear the ice cream truck and ran excitedly to it. In the second poem, I picture someone sitting next to a window in their home and reading a book on a quiet day and occasionally glancing up with interest when cars drive by. Overall, I gather a feeling of comfort, hominess, and warmth from both of these poems. Isabella Spiritoso, Fall 2018

I really liked this because it well represented Mido's way of thinking and brought back a lot of childhood memories. My neighbors and I would always run around the block trying to follow the sound of the ice cream truck during the summer. As soon as you heard that noise your heart would skip a beat for a second and you would be dead set on trying to find where it is at so you can get some ice cream (if mom gave you money). Sydney Rudny, Fall 2018

thinking through
every star I hopped
to get to you

Alissa Kanturek

driving home from work
today I choose
a different path

Isabella Spiritoso

your perfect smile
the only light
I need tonight

Hannah Haedike

the warmth of your love
lights up the night
a single flame

Sydney Rudny

I loved this pair! I thought they were both so warm and wonderful. They both talked about how a person can be a light in someone’s life, and I think that idea is really sweet. I thought these haiku could be a set written about the same person who was in love, and the comparison of the light was very interesting. Sophie Kibiger, Fall 2018

I like this match because in both cases the authors are comparing love to being the light. In the first case, it's more focused on the warmth of the love and relating it to being a flame. Whereas in the second, the author is focused on the love being the physical light, illuminating the light the couple is sharing. Both made me feel warm inside and have a very tender/loving tone to them. Naomi Klingbeil, Fall 2018

These two haiku fit well, to me, because of the comparison of love to light. Both haiku start focused on the act of the other individual and then focus inward. In both, that love lights up the dark of the night (which I take to mean the night of loneliness). It extinguishes the creepy, crawly things that can scare us, and provides a safe haven. Daria Koon, Fall 2018

This haiku was just so sweet. I imagined a woman coming home from a really horrible day. It seemed like everything that could go wrong happened. When she comes home she meets with her significant other and despite her horrible day, their smile lights up the night. She is so in love with them that their smile then makes her smile and makes her warm and fuzzy inside. It is the sweet sentiment and this haiku is relatable to so many people whether it be a friend, a family member, or a partner, everyone has that someone that can light up their lives. Mary Callaghan, Fall 2018

shouted slurs
over the bonfire
smoke comes alive

Mary Callaghan

gusty fall wind
inside
cocooned in a blanket

Alissa Kanturek

too many pillows—
i hold them in
your absence

Zachary McReynolds

Christmas eve
one of the presents
barks

Sophie Kibiger