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Stanford Forrester's Haiku
When thinking about what makes haiku really wonderful, people put more importance on different aspects of a haiku. Some people think technique is the key and the rest will follow, while others believe it is more about wittiness. It can be judged on anything from flow of the words and creativity to the juxtapositions and insight. Stanford Forrester is a poet that focuses on revealing some insight to the readers, believes that poetry has to come from somewhere within the writer, and points out the breathtaking ability of ordinary, everyday things that most people pass by without a second glance with humor and sophistication.
He has clearly made an impact on the haiku society as a whole. In an interview via email, Stanford explained that he started haiku writing about seventeen years ago. He went on to say that there is no one way to write a haiku. However, while it should not limit, it should make an “initial hit on the surface, but then you feel immediately there’s another level there and that hits you even harder.” While he does not believe in a set style, he has sort of developed his own. A lot of his inspiration comes from his “spiritual practice, from moments in my childhood, and youth, from traveling to different countries and from a certain group of live and dead poets”. His haiku come from a collection of his own experiences and philosophical questions that he thinks about a great deal (Email Interview).
It is my belief that Forrester’s life has had a huge impact on his writing style and techniques. While he is originally from New York, he currently lives in Wethersfield, Connecticut and is married with two children. His religion plays a huge role as well. He places a lot of importance on his beliefs in Buddhism. Many of his haiku also include buddhas, words with double meanings that can relate back to Buddhism, and meditative thoughts. For example, in Vincent Tripi’s and Stanford Forrester’s Temple Marigold published by Bottle Rockets Press:
moss garden on the stone buddhas the sound of rain
(Forrester, TM, 29)
This gives a very serene feeling. We see moss forming into a garden with stone buddhas all around. Buddhists often meditate using statue buddhas to keep themselves centered on the Buddha’s teachings. With this in mind, it becomes easy to smell and feel warm rain. The first part brings to mind meditation and a relaxing Zen garden. Then the end finishes it off with just hearing the rain fall. No one is running through it or watching it pour down. The rain adds to the soothing feel. This feeling of being at peace with the world seems to appear in many of Forrester’s works.
Forrester also writes a lot of tranquil haiku that show the reader a side of things not seen before. We are enlightened to little things that are so awe-inspiring. From Forrester’s Handful of Sand, also published by Bottle Rockets Press, we see this sort of aspect to his work:
handful of sand…
a flash of sunlight
in each grain
(Forrester, HOS)
Instead of saying something like “flashes of light sparkle in my hand,” it says one flash of light comes from each individual grain of sand. Each tiny grain is one piece of a whole bigger picture. The reader can see someone just lying on a beach, basking in the sun, and contemplating these little grains in their hand. Again, we see Buddhist’s mindset; appreciate the little things in life and meditate on it. Another example of this from Stanford Forrester’s Buddha’s Fingerprint published by Bottle Rockets Press is:
sun on the windowsill…
the dead bee
no longer yellow
(Forrester, BF, 2).
Not many people would think to write about a dead bee. However, Stanford shows us that even though it is dead, it is still there. It is no longer yellow, but illuminated in the sun. The sun almost honors the little bug with the windowsill becoming the mantel on which it was placed. This haiku is solemn, but definitely can be turned into something more when one takes a deeper look. The bee is present, and that is all that is necessary. This can tie back in with the Buddhist belief that all things that exist are temporary. To expand, it is a look at life and death. As he explained in our interview, “yellow is the light and the original color of the bee, but light can also fade things” (Email Interview). A final example would be:
daylight…
no one notices
the firefly
(Forrester, BF, 6)
This one makes no subtleties. How many people really notice fireflies during the day? We “oooh” and “aaaww” at night, but then they are forgotten. Are they not the same bugs at night as they are in the daylight? Such small creatures that dazzle us are simply not observed during the day. However, if someone is sharp-eyed and recognizes a firefly as the sun shines he/she becomes a little more enlightened to the world around him/her.
It is also important to take note of the connection all three of these haiku have in common. They all include sunlight, daylight, or the sun in some way or another. It appears that the sun is symbolic for the Buddhist’s Great Awakening. The sun illuminates these things that most would take to be trivial. By doing this, they become even more significant. And, the moment that that occurs is the Great Awakening. It is amazing how his haiku are so unique but connected at the same time in their own way and in using his own beliefs as an influence.
As far as technique is concerned Stanford has a variety of haiku. However, it seems he tends to uses a combination of humor and spiritual beliefs. At the surface his haiku seem superficial, but if the time is taken it unravels into something profound. His work does not need to be abrupt, technical, or far fetched comparison to get the feeling of enlightenment as some may think. There is still that pause and momentary disconnect, but it naturally flows into the next thought. In this haiku we see just that:
Zen archery
letting go
(Forrester, TM, 5)
The two lines logically follow one another. Archery consists of aiming at a target, letting go of the arrow, and hoping it goes where it was intended. When the “Zen archery” is thrown into the mix, the haiku develops into a completely new insight. We see Forrester’s Buddhist practice coming through in this one. The second line says “letting go.” This can be translated into letting go of all worldly attachments. For those who do not follow such beliefs or do not have the knowledge can interpret this differently. Those that find their inner peace know that in order to move forward one has to let go of the past. Or, it could be construed as people are always aiming towards certain goals in life. Nevertheless, their great ideas will never come to pass if they do not ever try it or do not take risks. Out of those four little words, the reader can get so much because it has insight and is universally understandable. Another example of this is:
writing a haiku
in the sand…
a wave finishes it
(Forrester, HOS)
Within the haiku’s pause, the person writing the haiku in the sand pauses. The person’s pause could be just a moment or it could be a writer’s block moment. Then the wave comes and washes over it. The writer then decides that fate took over the haiku and that is its end. Nature and this writer were connected for a moment through the haiku. According to Forrester, the haiku
“…hits on both the Buddhist and existentialist thoughts of impermanence. It is a poem about time. Sand, each grain represents moments of time, the transformation from mountain to sand…nothing is permanent. Water, though soft, can conquer stone. But it is about life. We can try to do something, but in reality we never have control ultimately of our lives.” (Email Interview)
As a final thought to this haiku, he adds humor. Instead of the poet finishing the haiku, the wave writes the “perfect” line. Again, Forrester notes that just as everything else, a poet’s fame is not permanent. Everyone wants to be famous and be remembered, but nothing lasts forever.
While Forrester is known for subtle pauses and serene haiku, he also has a broad range. In comparison to the previous, the following has an obvious break between two different subjects:
summer thunderstorm
quiet now-
lightning bugs
(Forrester, HOS)
This haiku starts with a summer thunderstorm. They always seem so loud and show up suddenly from no where. When it leaves, things seem quieter than before. In the distance, the lightning can still be seen, but the thunder is no longer heard. Lighting bugs come back out, as if they are mimicking the lightning. We see one flash, then another, a pause, and then another. The haiku can also be seen as playful. There is a harsh storm but then blink…blink. And everyone knows that it is okay again. Little kids forget that they were even scared to go out and try to chase the bugs around the yard. Forrester naturally balances haiku with serenity, solemn undertones, and lightheartedness.
Stanford Forrester shows us both his serious and playful sides within his works. Some of his haiku are very down to earth and can even take us back to our childhoods. For example:
only one flower
is needed to answer
your question
(Forrester, BF, 5)
While this haiku was intended to be astute, it is still rather ambiguous. Forrester says it is based on the first time the Buddha spoke after he was enlightened. As the story goes, the Buddha was asked what the meaning of life was and he held up one flower in response (Email Interview). However, we could also see, perhaps, a girl that has picked a flower. The young girl obviously has a crush on someone. She wants to know if the feelings are mutual. At that age, the only “guaranteed” way to know is with a flower. Each petal falls to the ground as she says, “He loves me. He loves me not…” The reason this appears to be a young girl with a little crush is based on several reasons. The haiku says that the flower is “needed” to answer. Needing something and wanting something are two different things. The girl wants the flower to answer her question so she can know if her crush likes her back. Secondly, flowers do not speak. They cannot answer back when a question is asked. The young girl is using a superstitious belief that if the last petal plucked is the “He loves me petal” then it must be true. This haiku can be nicely compared to that of another author. In Randy Brooks’ School’s Out published by Press Here we see:
end of summer—
mountain wildflower
pressed in her diary
(Brooks, Randy, 35)
I think these two haiku actually flow really nicely together. In the previous, we see a young girl who likes a boy. Then in the second haiku, before thinking about the upcoming school year, she reminisces of all that’s happened over the summer.
I like that both do not directly come out and say what is going on. They imply playful things that most people experienced in their adolescence. However, while the first gives an image, it is not as full as the second. We are given the smell of a flower, warmth of the summer, sense of a story to be told, and all with the same number of words. The first does not come out and say what is meant, but the reader can interpret. The only thing left to the imagination is “did he love her?” The second also allows the reader to come up with his/her own completely different interpretation. I wonder is the flower from a boy? Her first kiss? She could even be older and looking back at her diary. Perhaps she went on vacation to the mountain, saved the flower as memorabilia, and there is no boy at all. Overall, I like them both. However, both haiku could reach a broad audience with its indirectness and ambiguity. The first could be the answer to life’s questions or simply a child with a crush.
We see Forrester approach other ambiguous haiku, in a playful manner. This is also a haiku that at first glance can seem shallow. However, people that take the time look deeper can really begin to see how creative and fun his haiku are meant to be. They can apply universally to most people and connect to different audiences just as Brook’s and his haiku did previously. In the following haiku:
moon-viewing party
the moon
arrives late
(Forrester, TM, 21)
This is a good example of an amusing haiku where the people in the haiku are indefinite. The reader can insert whomever comes to mind. For instance, it could be a group of children that finally convinced their parents to let them stay up late. However, when the time comes, they fall asleep before the moon even comes out. Or, they could be adults wanting to enjoy time off from work or their own children. Then when they finally stop for a minute to enjoy it, their exhaustion from the weeks before kicks in and they give in to sleep. Furthermore, it could be taken as man’s inability to control the world around them. Things do not come and go at our every beck and call. Life happens as it happens.
Stanford Forrester approaches his work by using his heart. He gives us haiku that are meant to share with us some sort of wisdom, insight, and even humor. If he writes thirty in a day, he may only keep one, because the ones that are forced are not as good (Email Interview). Haiku that are not from the heart cannot touch people in the way that soulful haiku can. I believe this is why Forrester uses Buddhism in his work so much. He has chosen to focus in on what he knows and believes in the most. Haiku can be a creative/artistic outlet for many people. It comes from within; otherwise, what is the point? The reader’s should walk a path with the writer. It is what connects people through poetry. In Forrester’s case, he gives us both spiritual and intellectual haiku to be deciphered and enjoyed, not just read without a second thought. He has definitely added something unique to the haiku community by enlightening us with his work.
Works Cited
Brooks, Randy M. School’s Out. Foster City: Press Here, 1999.
Forrester, Stanford. Buddha’s Fingerprint: Expanded Edition. Wethersfield: Bottle Rockets, 2005.
---. Email Interview. 24 April 2007.
---. Handful of Sand. Wethersfield: Bottle Rockets, 2001.
Tripi, Vincent, and Stanford M. Forrester. Temple Marigold. Wethersfield: Bottle Rockets, 2006.
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