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Tom Clausen's Haiku of Family
by Courtney Gerk
May 3, 2012
Tom Clausen is a contemporary haiku writer who currently lives in Ithaca, New York. Born in 1951, Clausen is 61 years old. The book I studied, Homework, centers on his life with his family in his home. It is obvious that family is important to Clausen as he lives with his family in the same house he grew up in. He also followed in his parents' footsteps. They were botanists at Cornell University, and now Clausen works at the Access Services Department in Cornell's library, where he also studied. Clausen has an adventurous spirit and took two bicycle trips to Mexico and Guatemala.
Clausen started getting into haiku in the 1980s, after having children and realizing he had hardly any time to write. In an email explaining his approach to haiku, Clausen stated, "My primary method in writing is from direct experience in the moment, taken from something that I observe, something that happens, that catches my eye and senses . . . something that moves me a bit to note it. " He explained that he carries around a notebook in his pocket, a clipboard in his car, and a journal and flashlight by his bed. This way he will always have the opportunity to write down haiku as the moment passes. Clausen says that he writes a lot, but he usually does not do much revising. When he revises, he explained, it makes the haiku put too much effort into stressing an emotion. He says, "I much prefer the moments that 'write' themselves!" His first ten years of writing, he was too focused on getting them published that he could not let them just come to him. Now, he lets his urge to write be eclectic. He likes to write in solitude, but he can also be in the midst of activity to spark ideas. The challenge arises when he is with another person and does not have the opportunity to write. He feels that his haiku are best in the present tense just as the moment is happening. "I find that many wonderful haiku get lost and evaporate and are vanished from my consciousness and heart forever if I fail to take the time to record them in the present tense! Probably my very best haiku are those I never wrote!" (Clausen).
By studying his Homework, it is apparent that his family is a big part of his life. He writes about the trials of being a parent, the cute lifestyle of children, and the simple moments of being a family man. He takes a blunt approach to writing, similar to George Swede. He does not sugar coat his haiku in any way. However, his haiku, unlike Swede, are not as dark. He expresses happy moments, and tough moments as he experiences them. They are very down to earth and real. Reading Homework, I would assume that he writes as a daily journal. They do not seem as distant as memories, but they do seem very sincere as if he experienced it himself.
Here are some examples of his work:
playing a child's game
I learn all
his rules
Clausen, Homework, 9
This haiku is very contrasting. Clausen states that it is a child's game, which seems trivial compared to bigger games, such as life. But then, Clausen ends with "his rules". Even though it is only a "child's game", it has rules in which he must abide. A father makes the rules about life for his son. He gets to decide what acceptable and inacceptable behavior is. It means everything to a child when they get to create the rules. When I read this haiku, I see the father's admiration of his son. In this game, the father is not only abiding by his son's rules, but he is learning so much more about his son that he would have never figured out if he only created rules. This switch of positions for both father and son, is teaching the father more about parenting.
to the cat:
"that's complete and
utter nonsense"
Clausen, Homework, 11
Children play make-believe almost the entire time they are awake. Because they play pretend so much, children often believe in magic. Reading this haiku, I see a little kid who thinks of the cat as a sibling. He talks to the cat about things he is not comfortable to talk to other people about, and "understands" the cat's responses by the sway of its tail, or the face the cat makes. This haiku makes me wonder whether or not the child believes that he can actually hold a conversation with the cat, or if he is just pretending. However, this haiku is precious and respects the imagination of children.
while brushing my teeth
she tells me again:
"let's move"
Clausen, Homework, 18
Clausen vividly captured this moment with his words. The reader can picture the desire the husband has to please his wife, but the reluctance to let go of something he loves or the reluctance to spend more money. It is perfectly simple, as she tells him while he is brushing his teeth. He does this task on a daily basis, but moving out of a house is anything but simple. Tom Clausen lives in the same house that he grew up in with his parents. Therefore, moving out of the house would seem a good idea, since the house might be wearing down, or just for a change of scene. At the same time, it also seems like a bad idea because the house is more than just a house. All of Clausen's memories lie there.
I found the title of his book, Homework very fitting for the poems he put in here. When one hears the word "homework", they think of boring schoolwork that no one wants to do, but that has to be done in order to learn. The word usually applies to children, who would rather go outside and play with their friends, than sit still inside and study. Tom Clausen fills this book with similar feelings. He writes about the hardships of being a family man. The tedious moments that must pass in order for him to become a better father and husband. He also writes about "home" a lot. Therefore, this book is, in its own way, a description of homework, too. However, it is not the kind of homework that needs to be done for school, it's the kind of homework that needs to be done for life. Here are some more of Clausen's haiku that illustrate his title well.
losing control of my son
—and myself
Clausen, Homework, 9
Clausen sums up a disciplinary scene in a very simple way, but describes a very complex situation. His son was acting out and not obeying him. This caused a lot of stress and anger in him and so he had to discipline his son. However, the second line describes a disappointment in himself. The father was not happy with the way he handled disciplining his son. Maybe he yelled to harshly because he lost his temper, or maybe he gave his son a spanking. This haiku is very strong, in a simple way. The father expected himself to be more patient with his own son.
evening star. . .
she sleeps with the lion's tail
in her little hand
Clausen, Homework, 29
Clausen portrays the love little kids have and the care they have. It illustrates a pretty picture of an evening star shining through the window as the little girls lies fast asleep in her bed, holding a lion's tail. She holds the lion as she falls asleep because she is her lion's "mommy". But when she falls asleep, she is no longer the "mommy", but purely a little kid. She ends up only holding on to the lion's tail. I love how this haiku reminds us of the purity of children. They truly care and love. This haiku portrays the sweetness of children effectively.
bowed to the ground
the goldenrods
too tall of themselves—
I couldn't tell her why
the sky is blue
Clausen, Homework, 33
The first three lines not only describe a beautiful seen, but they provide a metaphor for the father's feelings. The goldenrods are normally tall and beautiful, but in this scene they are bowing down, suggesting humility. The next two lines explain why the humility. The father, who is normally supposed to be the one who "knows it all" and teaches his little girl everything, has been stumped with a question from his daughter. He cannot tell her why something he sees everyday exists. This is another example of Clausen describing how adults can learn just as much from children as children learn from adults.
At first Tom Clausen's haiku might seem simple, but if you look deeper into them, that is their beauty. Everyone has experienced something similar and he does a great job of portraying the everyday, common, simplicity of life. Here are some comparisons of Clausen's work with other authors.
sunrise:
I forget my side
of the argument
George Swede, The Haiku Anthology, 210
we bicker
all through the house
. . . cleaning
Clausen, Homework, 11
Both of these haiku show how unimportant arguments are when it is with a person you love. Swede shows this by creating the message that in the morning, it does not even matter anymore because the only feeling that sticks with you throughout the night is the love and care that you feel about whomever it is you fought with. The anger disappears, but the importance of the person you fought with does not go away. However, I like Clausen's haiku best because of the irony that sends the message. I imagine a married couple fighting about something that seems so miniscule. It is ironic that they are trying to be productive, cleaning up their home, but they are bickering, with is counterproductive in a relationship. I like that the tone of Clausen's haiku is very casual. It says that they bicker often enough to be able to clean together while bickering. It illustrates the high comfort level the couple has for one another, while Swede's just stresses the unimportance of the argument.
snowed in
the wedding ring quilt
lumpy with children
Peggy Lyles, To Hear The Rain, 64
I watch the TV
movie love scene my wife
already in bed
Clausen, Homework, 22
Both Lyles and Clausen portray a nostalgic moment between husband and wife. Lyles expresses pride in how much the couple was in love and now they are raising children together. She looks back on how she did not know how it was going to turn out, but is glad it turned out the way it did. Clausen also looks back on how when his wife and him were dating or in the honeymoon stage. At this time, when they watched a romantic movie, they probably held hands and imagined their own love story. But now, a romantic movie is on and his wife is just sleeping. However, the tone is not disappointment. He writes in the present but reminisces on their relationship in its early phases. Clausen's haiku portrays a comfort level between husband and wife. They know that they have each other and love each other. Therefore, there is no need to put themselves in the place of the movie anymore, as they once did when they first met.
autumn sea
a little girl's love
of small brown shells
Lyles, To Hear the Rain, 112
how long he cries
for the little shell lost
on the way home
Clausen, Homework, 7
Children make very strong attachment to different items. This is because at a young age, children see animation in inanimate objects. They are mothers to their dolls and friends of their stuffed animals. Lyles depicts this by simply stating the "little girl's love". It creates a calming atmosphere with the autumn sea. However, Clausen's seems more relatable. It is obvious to the reader that the father wrote this haiku in the present tense. For the little boy in Clausen's haiku, the shell was very important. It makes me wonder why the boy was so attached. It could be that he thought the shell was magical or lucky, or it could be that he played his favorite game with it. The way Clausen wrote it could be read many ways. I see a father in awe of how much something so little can mean so much to his son. Yet, others could see the father's irritation with his son's fuss. Still, it can be seen as a father just remarking on his daily life, implying that every day is a challenge with his little boy.
Tom Clausen's haiku have a realistic element that not all haiku writers have. His writing is present tense, creating the sensation that the reader is entering Clausen's own personal diary. Anyone who reads Clausen's haiku will feel they get to know him more personally. He opens up his life to his readers through his haiku.
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Works Cited
Clausen, Tom. Homework. Ed. John Barlow. United Kingdom: Snapshot Press, 2000. Print.
Lyles, Peggy. To Hear the Rain. Ed. Randy Brooks. Illinois: Brooks Books, 2002. Print.
Swede, George. "Sunrise." in The Haiku Anthology. 3rd ed. Ed. Cor van den Heuvel. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 1999. 208-217. Print.
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