Wally Swist's Nature Haiku
by Brandon Januska
Born in 1953 in New Haven, Connecticut, Wally Swist first came across haiku when he was in his early twenties. He came across the art of haiku when practicing zazen, which is seated meditation that focuses on the study of the self. Many of his haiku are related to nature, the landscape and to experiences that he has had while living in rural western Massachusetts, where he has lived with his wife, Donna, since the early 1980's. Swist uses his haiku to describe the joys and hardships that come with living in a rural area. In his book, The Silence Between Us, Swist defines haiku as being "the juxtaposition of two or more images that provides insight into nature or human nature." His definition of haiku explains why his haiku focus on nature and sensory details of life in western Massachusetts. Several of his haiku can be found in books such as The Mown Meadow, The Gristmill's Trough, and Blowing Reeds. According to Swist, "it is in walking that the best haiku can be created" (The Silence Between Us).
at the edge
of the iced-over pond—
a burst of cattails
Swist, TSBU, 32
I really liked the imagery in this haiku. The haiku paints a very clear picture of the frozen pond. The pond being frozen leads the reader to believe that there is little to no life around the pond because the plants died during the winter, but Swist mentions a burst of cattails. The cattails make me believe that it is spring. The pond is still frozen, but plants are starting to grow on the side of the pond. There are not a lot of plants around yet, just a burst, so I think that there is just one area where the cattails are growing through the melting snow and that those are the first signs of life and signs of spring.
centering sunlight
the orb weaver
spins its web
Swist, TSBU, 62
Orb weavers are spiders that are usually found in the spring or summer, so that makes me believe that this haiku is about a spring morning. The sun is rising and the light is shining on the orb weaver's web. Orb weavers spin circular webs. I can see a large circular web between two trees. The sun is rising and the light shines right on the center of the web, revealing the spider making the finishing touch on the web. The spider will then sit and wait for other insects to fly into the web that it has created. The orb weaver's web looks beautiful when the light reflects off of it and I believe that Swist wrote this haiku to try and capture the beauty of the orb weaver's creation.
Easter Sunday
a farmer's spade gleams
in the loosened darkness of earth
Swist, TSBU, 96
This haiku is about a farmer that is digging up the earth to begin planting his crops. The farmer is working even though it is a holiday because it is the first nice, spring day. He does not want to miss out on such a beautiful day for planting, so he decides that his Easter celebrations can wait until after he is done planting his crops. I like the contrast in the haiku between the farmer's spade and the loosened earth. The spade is gleaming from the sun, so it shows that it is bright and sunny and the spade is shining in the sun. The earth is described as being dark, so I can see the cool dark earth being pulled up. The bright spade and dark earth create a clear image that is very vivid with contrasting colors.
scraping across snow
the unlocked gate
glazed with ice
Swist, TSBU, 81
I like this haiku because it gives a clear image and it incorporates sound. I can see the gate glazed with ice. The sun reflects off the ice making the gate shine. Although the gate is unlocked, it does not open easily because it is scraping across the snow. I can hear the sound of the metal gate scraping across the snow. I can also see the man opening the gate and he is struggling because of the friction between the snow and the gate. The gate was unlocked to prevent the lock from freezing because had the lock been frozen shut, the man would have needed to thaw the lock in order to open the gate. I think the structure of this haiku is also interesting. I believe that having the second line indented is a way of showing the unlocked gate. The gate is not completely closed, so the line is open by starting indented.
farm banter
the bartender chalks
her pool cue
Swist, TMM, 31
This haiku is different from the other ones because it focuses on a person and an event taking place indoors instead of out in nature. I can see the bartender in the bar and she is being teased by the guys at the bar. She has challenged one of the guys to a game of pool and she is determined to win. She does not mind the guy playfully teasing her, but she wants to show that she can beat him. I can hear the cheers and sounds of the bar. I can see people crowding around the pool table trying to watch the game. Other people are scattered around the bar with their drinks in their hands. There is music playing and some people in the bar are singing along to it. The atmosphere feels like a party. I sense the party-like atmosphere when reading the haiku because of the bartender taking time off to play pool. She is not working, so I believe that she recently ended her shift and she is challenging one of the guys that she had served earlier in the day.
at the foot of the mountain
gravel crunches
beneath our feet
Swist, TMM, 32
I like this haiku because it is another one that appeals to multiple senses. I can see a group of people standing at the foot of the mountain. They look up at the mountain and they know that it will be a long journey to make it to the top. I can hear the gravel crunching as they begin their journey up the mountain. The people can feel the gravel beneath their feet. I believe that the second line is indented to show that they are beginning their journey up the mountain. Indenting is used when starting a new paragraph, so I see this indentation as an indication that a new journey is beginning. Indenting the second line also shows that the group is no longer in the same location that they were in the first line. The group has moved and is now further along on their journey. I think that this haiku is an indication that a journey must begin somewhere. In order to make it to the top of the mountain, the group must start at the foot of the mountain and work their way up. The journey might be challenging, but the end result is worth it when they make it to the top of the mountain. This is similar to challenges in our everyday lives. We must endure the challenges that we face and continue on our journey in order to reach the rewards that are waiting for us at the "top of the mountain."
all morning
the aroma of home fries—
pond simmering with rain
Swist, TMM, 17
This is another haiku that appeals to multiple senses. There is the smell of the fries being made in the kitchen. Outside, I can hear the rain falling upon the pond. I see the rain falling when I look outside, but inside, I can see a wife making lunch. I believe that this haiku is about a rainy day at Wally Swist's home. He is looking out at the rain hitting the pond. He turns and sees his wife making fries for lunch and he can smell the fries that she has been working on all morning. I like the connection between the fries being made and the pond "simmering" with rain. By using the word "simmering," Swist was able to connect the sound of the rain with the sound of the frying in the kitchen. Another way of looking at the haiku is that the fries may have already been eaten. If the fries were for breakfast, then they might be gone, but the smell is still lingering in the house. The smell of the fries has been there all morning and the rain continues to fall on the pond making it sound like things are still being fried in the kitchen. I like that Swist connects everything that is taking place outside of the house with the things that are taking place inside the kitchen.
cloud of mosquitos—
a bullfrog's song
explodes above the pond
Swist, BR, 8
This haiku was very easy for me to visualize. I can see the swarm of mosquitos flying above the pond. They are just flying around and are not aware of the potential dangers that wait in the pond. I see the bullfrog looking up at the mosquitos from in the pond. The bullfrog sees the mosquitos and lets out a loud croak as it leads out of the water towards the swarm of mosquitos. The croak is described as a song because the bullfrog is overcome with joy since it has come upon what it sees as being a large feast. The bullfrog swallows as many mosquitos as it can before landing back in the pond. This haiku has the sound of the mosquitos followed by the sound of the bullfrog and the splash when the bullfrog lands back in the pond. I picture this haiku being in the summer, because that is when I see the most mosquitos. This is a pond located deep in the forest. In addition to the sounds mentioned in the haiku, there are probably other sounds of wildlife from the forest. Sounds of birds and other insects along with the sounds of the frogs can be heard in the forest.
silence after our argument
crumpled cigarette pack
uncurling
Swist, TMM, 18
This haiku is filled with emotions. There is the anger that comes from the argument and disappointment during the silence that follows the argument. Once those emotions pass, there is a sense of joy as they unwind. I see an argument between a husband and wife. The husband has taken up smoking again and his wife caught him. She is extremely disappointed and they have a huge argument about it. I see the wife confronting the husband with the cigarette pack clenched in her fist. She is upset that he has been smoking again and even more upset that he tried to hide it from her. During the argument, the wife throws the cigarette pack down on the table. She walks out of the room to try and cool herself down. The cigarette pack slowly uncurls. The pack of cigarettes represents the wife's emotions. When the wife is angry and tense, she clenches the pack tightly in her fist. After she leaves the room to unwind, the cigarette pack unwinds with her. The silence after the argument shows that the husband and wife are absorbing the weight of the argument. The husband knows that his wife is disappointed and that he should not have attempted to hide the fact that he was smoking from her. The wife knows that she may have overreacted and that she will try to help her husband overcome his addiction to smoking and get over whatever stress caused him to start smoking again.
Wally Swist writes most of his haiku about his experiences in nature. Swist uses a similar structure in most of his haiku and strategically indents the second line on occasion. When he indents the second line, he is trying to show that reader that something has changed from the first line to the second line. He also used a dash at the end of some of his lines to show a change of focus. He uses a dash to go from one aspect of nature to another, or sometimes to go from focusing on one sense to focusing on another. Whenever he uses a dash or an indentation, he is intentionally trying to show the reader that something is different. He wants to make it clear that there is a shift in focus and that although the entire haiku is connected to tell one story, the dash or indentation comes at the story from a different outlook.
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Works Cited
Swist, Wally. Blowing Reeds. Fulton, Missouri: Timberline Press, 1995.
Swist, Wally. The Gristmill's Trough. Richland Center, WI: Hummingbird Press, 1991.
Swist, Wally. The Mown Meadow. San Diego, CA: Los Hombres Press, 1996.
Swist, Wally. The Silence Between Us. Decatur, IL: Brooks Books, 2005. |
