EN340 / IN350 Global Haiku Tradition
Dr. Randy Brooks
Millikin University PACE Summer 2004
Previous Home Next

JillPattersonJill Patterson

Essay on Karen Sohne

Selected Haiku
by

Jill Patterson

Throughout the haiku course, I have found a deeper appreciation for the smaller details in everyday places, things and memories. most of my haiku are written from past memories, some not long ago, and some, that had been long forgotten. I have enjoyed the experience of haiku, and the particular trips down memory lane.

I don't feel I have a certain style of haiku, however, I did notice I have a tendency to focus on painful situations. Or perhaps, in attempting to learn the art of haiku, I've been drawn back to places I've needed to go.

I hope you enjoy the following haiku, and are able to draw upon your own memories or stories.


hot summer day
watermelon drips
from our chins


stormy night
a small child's

tap on the arm


kissed his cold cheek
he flinches with pain
last memory

 

 

warm spring day
RECESS!
—last one picked


phone rings
time stops
second hand moves on

 

 

grandpa's worn chair
still warm from the sun
stis lonely


strangers gather
     leave
one thing in common

 

 

gazing out my window
the same line mowed
over and over


over and over
a soldier dies
I see my lover's face

 
 

smells of charcoal
sweet corn
replacing teeth


summer night
                fireworks
       stars . . . for the encore

 

©2004 Randy Brooks, Millikin University, Decatur, Illinois || all rights reserved for original authors