sudden shower
he covers my head
with his coat

capping verse

spring rain
on the window pane
consoles my tears

unpacking the suitcases
scent of home . . .
lingers

Maureen Ritter (5)

I enjoy this haiku. The pause before “lingers” is accentuated by the actual word. It slows the reader down. I can see someone that has left for a trip that they may not particularly want to be on. They take out each layer of clothing and slowly the scent from home becomes known. The person sits on the bed and longs to be home with their family. The clothes just sit next to them for a while. The person doesn’t want to put them in the drawer. That would close off the comforting feeling. —Jennifer Rule

unpacking
musty smell
of rain

Spring Break
a week at home
with strangers

afternoon showers
still warm in my bed . . .
with nowhere to be

                    Megan Minogue (7)

In this haiku, what I like best is the overall mood that it creates. The notion of hanging out in your bed all day long and not even feeling guilty is a rare thing for me to experience. I could lay in bed all day, but surely would feel guilty and crappy when I finally got up. This haiku, though, gives the same casual feeling sans guilt. The ellipses work well because we don’t know how it is necessarily going to end. It could have ended with a more high strung effect (how I would normally feel if lying in bed until the afternoon), but instead the casual effect was approached. Also, the first line, although generic, is essential for the last two lines to work so well. It sets up the scene but still stays connected to the haiku. I do not feel like it is just a seasonal element thrown in there for the sake of having a seasonal element. This haiku really enforces to me that it is ok and actually good for the soul to be completely lazy on occasion. —Molly

This feeling is perhaps one of the greatest there can be. This poem represents two different images to me. The first occurring when you awake before your alarm, you either look outside to see the drizzle and gray, or you stay in bed and can hear the thunder and rain fall, you look at your clock and realize that you can still sleep for another hour or two. Pulling the covers up to your chin, you roll over with a feeling of relief that you get to remain in your cozy bed before starting your busy day. What a relief on weekend mornings that you don’t have to rise early for class. Waking up to a rainy day means staying in bed longer, watching movies, reading books and spending lazy days with friends. I love the drizzly days of sleeping late knowing that you don’t have anywhere to be. Nothing can beat the feeling of your warm cozy bed when the weather outside is cold and wet. —Jennifer Toney

I chose this haiku because this was the exact way I spent my spring break. I see a college kid who couldn’t afford to go on spring break, so he looked forward to spending it golfing and fishing here. Instead of that happening, the rain came and washed all his plans away, leaving him lying in his bed all day long. —Tony

saying goodbye
spring rain
in our hair and shoes

Jenny Schultz (6)

From this haiku I get the image of a young couple who may not see each other again for a very long time. Perhaps they are going to different schools or one may be leaving the country for a while. I see this couple getting soaked in the warm spring rain just holding each other, not wanting to let go. The idea of “rain in our hair and shoes” makes it seem like more than just a light drizzle. I see their hair mopped to their heads and the shoes sopping and heavy with water. —Sylvia

old pictures
from my wall
gone

Maureen Coady (2)

We’ve all experienced this moment, when we look around our room and remember how it used to be, how it’s changed and see what’s missing. It could be the removal of old toys you had as a child, pictures of a lover or family member who are now gone, clothes in the closet, things are different now. Perhaps it’s because we’ve grown up or because of a loss but either way, things are not as they were. Time reflects itself in our interests, our style, and our lifestyle and even through our pictures. —Jennifer Toney

miles of interstate
turns to quiet dirt road
the smell of home

                   Alida Duff (9)

This haiku actually reminds me of driving to my grandma’s house. She lives in rural Indiana, and every time my family goes to visit her, the drive on the highway is endless. It’s incredibly boring scenery and the trip seems to take three hours, when in actuality it only takes one. Finally, however, there is an exit that brings us closer to her house; the roads gradually become less and less paved, until we hit the dirt road that signifies Grandma is only 10 minutes away. There is a distinct smell about her property, foreign to the very suburban noses of my family, and we always search for it once we hit the dirt path. Even though I don’t live there, her house has always felt like home to me; it’s where my extended family gets together and emotionally, we are all home. This haiku brings me back to that nice place. —Maureen Ritter

I really liked this haiku. It hits really close to home for me because I do a whole lot of driving myself and go all over the place. I pictured myself in this one driving a six hour trip back from my relatives in Wisconsin. When I get back into Decatur, I almost always roll down my windows and take in the nice soy-filled air in Decatur. Then I know I’m home and fell a certain amount of comfort just knowing that I only have fifteen more minutes until I’m at my house. I also almost always take country roads to avoid all the bad drivers in this town, which are not dirt but they are not main roads. —Ben Kress

mile marker
   one
nine hundred ninety-nine
   still to go

M I L E S ...
nothing in sight
where is home

Alison Burns

This reminded me of my flight home from Las Vegas. I was tired and ready to be home, but still after landing and getting off the plane, I still have to drive in a car another 3 hours. So, it seemed like we were miles away from home. It was a time where I wanted to be home so bad, but then when I got there it wasn’t so great. This haiku just captured that moment for me. Especially when you are anxious to be somewhere, it doesn’t seem to come fast enough. —Brianne

D I S T A N C E
minutes go by
I dream of us

bad directions
wadded up
finding my own route

capping verse

I can see a guy who has received these directions from someone who really didn’t know how to get there. The guy has been driving around in circles totally confused by the directions and gets so fed up with the whole thing, that he tosses the directions out the window. He opts to find his own route based on his instinct and finally gets him and his buddies to their spring break destination very late. —Tony

toward city lights
the white lines
catch our headlights

sand miles away
       S U N
  feels so good

Alison Burns

I liked this Haiku because it reminded me of my break. I went to Las Vegas where it was very warm, but was never on a beach or on sand, even though we were in the desert. I liked how they have compared the sun and the sand. This definitely gave me the feeling that I was on spring break again in the the hot weather, but not on a beach. I like the simplicity of the haiku, though it still gives a great image and is easy for me to relate to. —Brianne

baby's first slumber
mother's bad dreams
put to rest

Abe Millikin (5)

I’m not sure what this has to do with spring break, but this is my favorite haiku from the kukai. I imagine a mother with a newborn child who has only been home from the hospital for a few weeks. The baby has spent these weeks crying and sleeping fitfully, and because the mother has never gone through this before, she has a hard time dealing with this. Each cry strikes fear in her heart and she is unsure what to do. She tries everything she can think of but nothing helps, and even when she gets an hour or two to sleep, it isn’t restful, simply because she worries about her mothering instincts. Then one night, the baby goes to sleep peacefully, and the mother is finally able to collapse out of exhaustion. She sleeps well and all of her fears about her inability to comfort her child are finally pushed out of her mind. —Maureen Ritter

our new house
stranger's growth
marked on the door frame

               Abe Millikin (7)

This haiku presents me with a clear picture. I see a young couple moving in to their first house. Boxes are everywhere, and as they start unpacking they walk in between the kitchen and the dining room and see that the growth of a boy over the years has been marked on the door frame. It’s interesting to compare the time that was spent in the house by the previous family, the years the boy was growing, and the future that the new family will have in the house as well. I identify with this a lot because my Grandmother has measured all of us on her doorframe: children, spouses, and grandchildren since we were little. —Katie S

This haiku paints such a great picture.  Children our always so interested in watching the progress in their own growth, so marking it off on a doorway is  so fun and exciting for children.  What is so unique about this haiku is that it captures the excitement of the strangers growth mark on the door way, but at the same time it also expresses the hesitation in the new comers to the home.  I feel has if the person noticing the marks on the door, realizes that this is somebody elses home with their own memories, just like he or she may have left their old home with all of their memories. —Megan Minogue

This haiku struck a note with me because my family has measured ourselves on the wall between the kitchen and hallway and it has always been "home" for me because it reminds me of all the friends that used to frequent our house that seldom come around anymore.  I know it will be hard to give that up when my parents paint over those markings but I look forward to setting the bar for my children on a wall in my own home and seeing if they will surpass it. —Cliff

breakfast surprise
eggs sunny side up
find me glowing

home again—
chamomile tea
every morning

bright sunny morning
he awakes hung-over
        . . . in the front yard

               Ben Kress (5)

I just get a very cinematic picture from this; straight out of "Animal House" or something like that.  I can see a guy in a robe or something clutching a manequin or blowup doll from the night before that he remembers nothign about.  I always get a little chuckle when I read it. —Cliff

This haiku reminds me of my dad. There was an occasion, which my aunts have been nice enough to tell me about. When my dad was my age, he went out to the bar one night. He came home so intoxicated that he couldn’t figure out how to get into the house, so he slept on the picnic bench in the back yard all night. That was the first thing that came to my mind. —Colby

sandy beaches
never-ending blue
spring break

sunshine
on the dewy grass
. . . beer cans

loads of homework
along with midterm exams
. . . ah, spring break

warming weather
six more weeks
six more weeks

capping verse

Each winter, I simply can’t wait for it to warm up. I completely hate cold weather. At the first sign of warming, I start to get excited- knowing that summer is approaching. I can’t wait to be able to wear my shorts, to spend my summer enjoying the countryside, taking in the beauty around me. Every year, I have to remind myself to simply be patient; summer will come soon, but it’s just too hard to not crave the warmth of summer during the frigid winter days. —Alida

sharing a romantic dinner
with the lights down low . . .
back together

Megan Minogue

When I read this haiku, I thought of two lovers that have been apart for a extended amount of time and now they are together in each others arms. I feel the warmth of the arms embracing each other; I see the candle flickering and the sparkles in each others eyes. I have experience a moment like this so I think that is why I can relate to it so well. —Alison

hotel hot tub
tickling bubbles
in our champagne

               Alida Duff (7)

What I enjoy so much from this haiku is the effective use of “t” and “h” words. I think the haiku feels good on the tongue, meaning it rolls off nicely with a good flow. In particular, I like the word “tickling” used in the second line. It provides a good sensory image, as I can just imagine from the few sips of wine I have ever had in my life. The author sets the scene by saying “hotel hot tub” rather than only “hot tub” and even though in class we all know this is from spring break, it is a haiku that anyone could read and find a connection to their own life. The words chosen are not too smarmy, but just enough to get the image across to the reader. —Molly

This is just such an intimate and sensual scene; it's like a Barry White song (which I can hear playing in the background)!  I very much like the 'tickling bubbles' because that is exactly what they do. They form on your lips and tongue as you drink it and I think the first time I tried it, I wasn't prepared for the bajillions of bubbles and I definitely felt my nose get tickled.  In addition to champagne, I'm a big fan of hot tubs, and it's nice to just get consumed in the heat of it all. —Sarah

I really enjoy the alliteration in this haiku. The repetition of the “t” and “h” sounds make it really fun to say. The image is also very fun. I see a couple on a vacation of honeymoon just enjoying each others company and not having a care in the world. All that matters is the two of them having a good time and perhaps even letting the child in them come out a little bit. —Sylvia

the back deck
one lawn chair
my spring break

capping verse

steamy evening
my eyes swollen
one lover too many

car windows open
school sweatshirt
crumpled in shotgun

               capping verse

This haiku completely embodies the feeling of freedom I felt when driving home by myself for spring break this year. Leaving Decatur, I rolled down my windows, turned up my radio and simply enjoyed the smell of the clean, fresh spring air. The day was gorgeous. The blue skies welcomed me home, spotted with tiny white puffs of clouds. The bright sun warmed the day. I put on my sunglasses and threw my sweatshirt in the seat behind me with my bag of hastily packed clothes. It was the perfect beginning to a week without worries, free to do as I pleased, without the responsibilities of school bogging my mind. —Alida

car windows open
the old poodle
smells the wind

first spring rain
dead fields
alive with green

March mist
secret revealed
a crushed mother

raining all week
the worms leave their lairs
to swim

Casey Wilen (3)

spring morning
I wake up late
finally

Ann Anderson

This one is also along the lines of the other haiku, in aspects of how it makes me feel. The difference is that I finally got to sleep in late, after spring break, when I was no longer getting up at 6:45am to make it to St. Teresa. I must say, that one good sleeping in day that I got to have made it all worth while, because it was by far the best morning to wake up to. It was warm, the sun was high in the sky, and I just got to lay in bed as long as I wanted. It was my final little point of relaxation, and I savored every last bit of it. —Casey W.

heavy march rain
I walk through the basement lake
to do laundry

raindrops tapping
on the window
motionless

Jennifer McGeehon

I really enjoyed this haiku. I can hear the soft sound of the rain on the window. I can smell the subtle scent wafting in. The raindrops are blurring my vision as I try to look out. The drops’ blurriness seems to make everything slowed down or even motionless. Without the ability to see crisp objects, slight movements go undetected. This haiku has a very calming effect. The stillness is very apparent. —Jennifer Rule

sudden showers
my hat smells like a wet sheep
as I run to the house

relearning
how to tie
my tie

capping verse

soft yarn
between my fingers
between cat's paws

three baby ducklings
perfectly aligned
on the white frosting

capping verse

no school
my drink in one hand
the remote in the other

               Tony Douglass

This haiku is important to me, because this is what I wish my spring break had been like, but unfortunately I had to stay in Decatur, and intern over at St. Teresa High School. Needless to say I basically had a full time job, so there was no relaxation time for me. I like this haiku because it puts things into perspective for me. I could have been lazy all of spring break, but instead I worked on things for school and got a lot done, and with that came a sense of fulfillment, and relaxation because now I no longer have to worry about my internship hours or the other things I finished that week. —Casey W.

I loved this haiku. I see a college kid, on Friday, who has his only class for the day cancelled. He knew about it since the last class, but still wakes up at the same time as he would have for the class. Since its early, and he has nothing to do all day, he cracks open a beer and plops down to watch some T.V. He just sits and sits there pretty much all day until its time to go out and party at night. —Ben Kress

sunny day
a diamond sparkle
covers the ocean

Tony Douglass (5)

This reminds me of our family trips to Mexico.  It really is a paradise there, it's like 85 and sunny every day!  Anyway, anyone who has ever looked out onto the ocean when the sun is right above it knows exactly what this haiku is saying: it's like a sparkly diamond mesh on top of the water, and looks very beautiful.  I especially like the "diamond sparkle" just because of all the images it conveys.  It's like pouring glitter in your hands and just moving it around.  Plus, I've always been distracted by sparkly things. —Sarah

cool ocean water
splashing onto the boat
mixing with the rain

Jennifer Rule (2)

I can see myself in high school on a marine biology trip. Im there on the boat with my classmates getting ready to go to our dive site. Then all of the sudden the clouds turn and the waves get bad. When the next thing you know have the the students are throwing up over the side of the boat. Needless to say that their was plenty of fish to see on our dive. —Mike

brand new swimsuit
powdery white skin
turning a bright red

shorts weather
winter white skin
blinding in the light

Katie Steimann (3)

house rules
I remind them
I'm 21!

old friend slowly climbs
onto the couch
slobbering kisses

friends in Florida
my tan
from a bottle

Leigh Kitchell

I really like this haiku because it is how I have felt many times on spring break. You don’t want your friends who went somewhere to be the only ones to be tan. I felt the loneliness that the author feels. There is also disappointment in this haiku. —Julia S

ocean breeze
drinks and the sunset
. . . maybe next year

Maureen Coady

This haiku spoke to me, almost as if I was the one that wrote it. This spring break I went to Colorado and tried to find a job for the summer, while I had a great time and would not have changed it for the world, there is nothing better than laying on the beach and feeling the warmth of the sun beat on your face. I dreamed of the ocean and swimming and getting tan all day. I also enjoyed this haiku because of its element of surprise, just reading the top two lines, you would have thought that this person was on. —Alison

spring break
on a white beach in Florida . . .
only in my head

Tony Douglass (2)

I could sympathize with this haiku. I was broke as a joke this year, so I couldn’t go anywhere for spring break. My roommate went to Florida, and I was very jealous. Needless to say, I prayed for rain in Florida for the week, but it only rained here the entire week. I could relate to this haiku because all week I was only thinking about how nice it would be to be lying on a beach in the bright sun! —Jenny McGeehon

This is an unfortunate tale of spring break. At first I get very excited learning that this individual has had the opportunity to experience the Florida spring break. Upon reading the final sentence however I tragically learn that it is only a desire. The haiku is very misleading. I was very energized to see the words Florida and spring break in the same Haiku. The third and conclusive line is a serious blow to my anticipation. Although unfortunate, this Haiku is very exciting and demoralizing. —Ted

hot sun and sandy beaches
I change
the channel

Maureen Ritter (2)

I liked this haiku a lot. First of all, I think that is pretty funny and contains the element of surprise. When reading the first line, the reader imagines the beaches and thinks the next line will be more about them. However, the next line surprises the reader because the beaches were only seen on t.v. I could also relate to this haiku because I was stuck here for spring break. I can imagine trying to relax and not be depressed about being home by watching t.v. I can imagine turning to a station with the hot sun and sandy beaches on it. I too would change the channel real quick! —Jenny McGeehon

white water crashing
on the sandy beaches
rained out spring break

the shore
I walk
daydreaming

Casey Turnipseed

I can see myself walking down the shower with not a care in the world, cause i know that I am in paradise. I can also see the end of the movie Shawshank Redemption when Red is walking on the beach to see is friend. He is wonder what it is goignt o be like when they meet again and it is the excitement that keeps his journey going. —Mike

spring break date
junk food
and little sis’

five a.m. shiver
as the car door closes
next to my window

it's a funny word
say it with me
Kissimmee

Colby Hanik (7)

This haiku is really cute. It brings me back to my childhood trips to Florida. I remember seeing the sign for Kissimmee and trying to sound it out. Kissimmee truly is an interesting name for a city. I can picture a young child seeing the sign and laughing, trying to do the same thing. I can also picture people our age going on spring break in Florida and taking a road trip there. By the time they would see Kissimmee they would have been in the car for a long time and would probably be going a little stir crazy. —Katie S.

paradise
in his eyes
I found

drinks all around
   one more
    no more

store to store
spending money
I don't have

last call . . .
he pulls out his wallet
           . . . E M P T Y

               Ben Kress

Unfortunately this Haiku is one that I can relate with all too well. Every spring breaker can attest to this tale at some point or another. With me, it was over and over again. The words last call are very catchy. Although they paint an ill-fated picture in my head they catch my attention immediately. I can instantaneously put myself in the colorful picture they have painted in my head. Many times over spring break I withdrew my wallet from my back pocket only to find out that it was barren. A very heart wrenching tale, but one that I can associate with, none the less. —Ted

This is a good haiku because everyone can relate. You don’t know where all your money went at the end of the night. It has a surprise element to it and it is funny at the same time. I really like this haiku. —Julia

cigarette ash
on my forearm
aloe Vera

white shirt
ripped
man that water's cold . . .

third hour on the road
eagles hovering over
barren trees

sisters share a bed
late night giggles
sacred tradition

Leigh Kitchell (3)

I really like this haiku because it takes me back to my childhood days with my sister.  We shared a room while growing, so we would always cuddle up in bed and talk all night.  We still do it to this day if we are ever both staying at my parents house.  There is something so special about the friendship between sisters, there is nothing like it, and I really fell that bond within this haiku.  I love the use of "s" in this haiku as well; sisters, giggles, sacred.  Overall, this haiku has a wonderful way about bringing real warmth to the haiku. —Megan

pouring down rain
snuggled in the covers
enjoying the day

warm rain
my heart beat
quickens

S     h    a   r   k  a t t a ck

showgirls
fully covered
. . . on their head

beauty n’ the beach
so much to see
take in every second

wasted bar crowd
he tumbles over . . .
a fallen drunk

Ben Kress

This had a lot of motion in it. The fallen drink just laying there in a pool of liquid and then you have the drinker tumbling over and I see him laying down next to the glass in the liquid and drooling out his mouth. So I see two objects drizzling some liquid out of them. Not very pretty, but it is an interesting haiku. —Travis

too many drinks
midnight swim
unknown faces

standing there, staring
through the looking glass
envying Alice

friend's 21st
helping her
get under the covers

spring break cleanup
he carries garbage
bottles t u
              m
            b
              l e everywhere

Ben Kress (12)

I just love the use of space and lines for the word tumble. It adds so much to the haiku because the words are tumbling like the bottles out of some garbage bag or can. I would also like to point out I love how the author places the letters in tumble...it is like they are tumbling off the line. Great job. —Travis

praying for dreams
of anything but
you

               capping verse

I really enjoyed this haiku. If I were to edit it, I may put the last line indented a little more. Give it a bit more suspense. I think we have all had a person in our life where we got very hurt from. However the relationship ended, there was a scar left. Then, at night, when you’re trying to go to bed, all you can think about is them. And whatever you do to try to get them out of your head, it doesn’t work, so you thin about them more. Then, when you get to sleep, you inevitably have a dream about them. Then the next day you wake up and that dream is on your mind. So, you think about them all day, then again lying in bed and you dream of them once more. So, it doesn’t end. And you lay there in bed, just praying for something to change and take you out of that world. —Colby

yearbook in my lap your old picture

spring cleaning—dust sprinkled sunbeam

               Alida Duff (7)