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Ryan Mecum was born May 31, 1975. He is the author of two unconventional books of haiku, Zombie Haiku and Vampire Haiku. He completed his degree in English from the University of Cincinnati. He continues to live in Cincinnati, OH with his wife and children. Mecum works for YoungLife, a youth ministry based in Colorado Springs, CO. They provide a teen based ministry that attempts to reach teenagers “where they live” (http://www.younglife.org/AboutYoungLife/). Mecum also loves the band REM and frequently attempts to sneak their lyrics into his writing. (http://www.ryanmecum.com/aboutme.html).
Mecum has a very unorthodox approach to haiku. These two collections are written from the perspective of a monster. Zombie Haiku was first published in 2008, followed by Vampire Haiku in 2009. He is currently working on Werewolf Haiku, which is due to be published in 2010. (http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/294859-werewolf-haiku). Both Zombie Haiku and Vampire Haiku were published by How Books of Cincinnati, OH.
Mecum’s haiku are traditional haiku, in the sense that they mostly maintain a 5-7-5 syllable format, but they take up a very interesting subject matter. Most of the haiku in both books are very graphic and actually humanize their monster subjects by giving the reader an unusual perspective into the mind of a monster. These haiku can be classified as senryu because they address life’s “follies” with humor and sarcasm. (Nery)
Mecum uses two fictional writers to bring his haiku to life. In Zombie Haiku, the author is Chris Lynch. The book begins with a preface, an introduction of sorts to whoever may find the haiku journal, along with a brief explanation of the events that have led most people in the world to turn into zombies. He is hiding in an airport bathroom where he has taken refuge. Lynch has obtained the journal from one of the zombies that is chasing after him. The first few haiku are traditional, filled with words of nature and love, but as the original owner/author of the journal has been overcome by the zombie producing illness, Lynch is given a glimpse of his future if he can not find a way to decapitate himself. This doesn’t seem too likely since he is trapped in a rather empty airport bathroom. The original writer appears to have continued to write haiku long after his changing, almost up until the point that Lynch steals his journal and pen and arm.
Vampire Haiku, the author’s second attempt at monster haiku journaling is amusing and cynical. It is written as the journal of a young man who sails from England on the Mayflower. His name is William Butten, and he is bitten by a beautiful vampire named Katherine. This journal was started before William is turned, but in part it is a bit of he and Katherine’s love story. He is continually chasing her across time and country. William is witness, and sometimes cause of, many important events in American history such as the Boston Tea Party and Wounded Knee. He provides social commentary from a non-human point of view. He appears to be in our world, but not of our world. He is cynical, sarcastic and humorous; much like the writer of the stolen journal in Zombie Haiku. He presents American history and culture from a new perspective. Especially interesting is the more current reference to the Twilight series of books and movies.
Those were not vampires.
If sunlight makes you sparkle,
you’re a unicorn.
(Zombie Haiku, page 117)
This sarcastic sense of humor seems to be a trademark of Mecum’s. His own webpage is filled with humorous monster haiku, and includes a series of zombie haiku written from the perspective of famous historical poets. When writing from the perspective of Edgar Allen Poe, Mecum writes:
Beside of the sea
I killed my Annabel Lee
Because zombies do that
(www.ryanmecum.com)
While not exactly Poe, it does seem to capture some of the authors brooding spirit. Another example of zombie haiku by dead authors, channels the Bard.
To bite through the skull
or beat it against the wall?
That is the question.
(www.ryanmecum.com)
Surely Shakespeare could have done better, and it’s not Hamlet, but it does seem to be a start at bringing a new perspective to this niche writing style.
I can see how many “serious” haiku critics or writers would want marginalize Mecum’s work. It is a niche category of haiku; it doesn’t address “real” life. But I would argue that judging by the collection below, many of his haiku can have deeper meaning, or be designed to encourage the reader to take a new perspective in examining the world around him. If nothing else his writing is fun. In a world that is too busy and hectic, surely a place can still be found for a bit of fun. Even if it does involve brain chewing zombies and blood sucking vampires.
The underage girl
and century-old dead guy,
awkwardly in love.
(Vampire Haiku, page 117)
I am a cynic, and I find this haiku to be exacting and precise in its summative assessment of the teen (and I’m truly ashamed to see, adult) craze, Twilight. A series of poorly written and poorly plotted books have created a multi-million dollar industry seated around a fictional seventeen year old high school girl and a century old vampire that she is supposed to have an incredible amount in common with. Mecum is able to capture almost every bad thing I have ever said about the plot of this story in seventeen syllables. It is concise, but asks the reader to think deeply about what love is, and isn’t. “Wouldn’t this ‘love story’ simply be another form of pedophilia?” Mecum seems to ask without actually using words. He also seems to ask the reader to briefly examine what love is. The line “awkwardly in love” seems to invoke to question “How could that possibly work?” How could two people from such markedly different backgrounds and ages possibly have enough in common to form anything beyond a lust-match, let alone a love-match?
I loved my momma.
I eat her with my mouth closed,
how she would want it.
(Zombie Haiku, Page 40)
This is another example of love used in Mecum’s poetry, but it is a very different kind of love. This marks the love of a child for a parent. Written from the perspective of the zombie owner of the haiku journal found by Lynch, this haiku shows that even though the man has died and became a zombie, some of his mother’s original teachings survive somewhere in his brain. Perhaps, they have been kept alive a bit longer that other civilized skills because of the love that bound them to his brain in the first place. It is not love that makes us civilized human beings that follow the law, but it is love that keeps us from turning into crazed killers who snack on their parents. I think Mecum might have been trying to not only bring some levity to this situation, but also to demonstrate the power of the love of a parent and the influence that love has on our lives (and deaths).
Buildings are burning
and ash covers everything
Now they are gray too.
(Zombie Haiku, Page 71)
As the newly dead became zombies, their skin became gray. Now this new turn of events has created a world with no color barriers. Everyone is gray from the ash, living and dead. I think this haiku has a way of making us wonder about bigger things than brain-eating zombies. What would the world be like without color? If everyone where suddenly gray, like in this passage, would things be different? I don’t believe that the author originally had the intention of beginning a heavy discussion of race relations in society, but just by reading this one passage out of context, without the guts and gores of a zombie infested world, we are able to give ourselves time to think. The “and” seems to be very deliberate, because without it, he would maintain his normal syllable pattern. I don’t see as much difference with or without the “and” but it seems to be important to the writer.
Something on the news
about people acting odd,
so I switch to sports.
(Zombie Haiku, Page 6)
The warnings of a world about to collapse where there for the man that was about to become a zombie and would eventually lose his haiku journal, and arm, to Chris Lynch. This haiku is interesting because it shows the apathy of our society when we do not believe that events are related to us personally. Maybe if the author had known he could have been better prepared, he could have hid in a bomb shelter or something, but he ignored the initial warning. The next few haiku in this series go on to tell of a neighbor behaving strangely and a “drunk” who almost falls in front of the writer’s car. This haiku seems to be Mecum’s warning “If only he had paid attention, maybe…” We all become overwhelmed by the amount of bad news available. I frequently hear people comment about how the world is becoming a worse and worse place to live, but the hard fact is people have always been ridiculously awful to each other. We now just have CNN and Fox News to reiterate the fact 24 hours a day. Maybe though, if we would take action instead of turning the channel to sports we could make things different. I’m not sure though, horrible seems to be the true human condition.
Since I don’t see it,
a bright sun seems like a myth;
like I am to some.
(Vampire Haiku, page 61)
This haiku is a bit philosophical. If a tree falls in the woods, but no one is around to hear, does it make a sound? If I never see something, does it really exist? This haiku is written from the point of view of a vampire who, by this point, is about three hundred years old. After having not seen the sun in that long, anyone would wonder if it really exists or if it is simply a fantasy, a myth. This haiku reminds me a bit about faith. Just because you can’t see a deity, does it make them any less real? Just because they don’t answer your prayers does this make them any less real? Maybe, they don’t want to be seen, and maybe what you prayed for was stupid or they just didn’t like that idea. As humans, we frequently feel like we need to see something to believe in it. The same thought process can be applied to the haiku above. If we just turn off the TV doesn’t the bad news just go away? It’s almost like we need to be beat over the head by something to believe in it. Just the way William would have felt about the sun after having not seen it in three hundred years. Or maybe this haiku has more to do with William’s self esteem. By comparing himself to the sun, he questions his own existence. Either way, with this haiku, Mecum shows that he can be reflective, even if his character can’t be.
You would be surprised—
the amount of wooden stakes
that are in most rooms.
(Vampire Haiku, Page 84)
Isn’t it funny the number of things you see when you go looking for them? It’s a bit like buying a new car. It seems that you could go months without seeing a blue Volkswagen, but if you were to go out and buy one, you would probably see at least five a week every week after that. It is when we become effected by something that we truly begin to notice it’s prevalence. I think a lot of Mecum’s haiku are about noticing the world around us. They are about looking at the world from a new perspective and considering things in a new light.
Whenever they say
“Remember the Alamo,”
my mouth salivates.
This passage is the first in a series that the author uses to tell the “real” tale of Davy Crockett. It is a wonderful example of Mecum using his character to “change” history. Instead of dying a hero’s death at the Alamo, Crockett is instead turned into a vampire by William. William notes later that he and “Davy” got along well, and the next time he’s in Texas, he’ll “look him up”. Strangely he does later look up Davy in Texas, he finds him on a compound, the leader of a cult. They both have a wonderful time together on the compound, until the government comes along to bust things up. Not to worry, they both escape to cause more mischief; though that’s not what the government lists on its official report. This is a wonderful example of Mecum’s sense of humor. He is able to take two very significant moments in US history, and poke fun at them. He is also able to humanize (or maybe, vampirize) two situations that many would only relate to in history books or on the news.
Flying over zoos,
vulnerable giraffe necks
are hard to pass up.
(Vampire Haiku, Page 73)
This is another example of Mecum’s humor. It presents an amusing visual image of a vampire soaring over a zoo, but being tempted into the giraffe’s enclosure. What could be more tempting than one of those stretched, defenseless necks? It might just be like the vampire equivalent of a midnight snack. Most have been tempted on a late night by the glow of the fast food signs up ahead. This is a good example of Mecum’s attempts to convince the audience that his character, the writer, is more like them than the monster “propaganda” would have them believe. Sure, William may be a blood sucker, but he too faces temptation, he too loves, and snacks. Besides as Mecum puts it so eloquently in another haiku:
My conscience is clear.
It’s not me that kills people,
it’s the loss of blood.
(Vampire Haiku, Page 30)
• • •
Works Cited
Mecum, R. (n.d.). ryanmecum.com. Retrieved March 15, 2010, from http://www.ryanmecum.com
Mecum, R. (2009). Vampire Haiku. Cincinnati: How Books.
Mecum, R. (2008). Zombie Haiku. Cincinnati, OH: How Books.
Nery, S. (n.d.). Poetry Review. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from alibi.com: http://alibi.com/index.php?story=24443&scn=art&submit_user_comment=y
Young Life. (n.d.). Young Life FAQ. Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.younglife.org/AboutYoungLife/
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