Haiku Kukai 06 favorites
Global Haiku • Millikin University • Spring 2022
1 my cautious fingers Sydney Sinks (7) I like this haiku because I finger comb hair as a way to self sooth. I have done it since I was a child and my mom says that even now I sometimes pull her hair in my sleep if I’m having a rough night. It’s nice to know that this is somewhat of a universal experience or at least something that some other people do. Gwen Klinkey, Spring 2022 |
2 exhaling cigarette breath Amanda Handegan (4) |
3 my tribe Amanda Handegan (5) I am obsessed with the way that Amanda writes. This one was definitely about our friend group when we just are enjoying each other’s company and being crazy together. We love to go out together and be the most iconic and fun looking group out in public at the bars. We walk in together; we walk out together… usually. We just love each other all so very much and our lives would be totally fucked without any of them. The mystical words used to create the night sky is very iconic as well as comparing her friends to her tribe of people, her community. Chase Nelson, Spring 2022 |
4 my mother creeps in |
5 in your living room Sydney Sinks I really love this haiku because of how intimate and almost forbidden it feels to me. I personally always associate smoking cigarette’s with being outside, so the fact that they are in inside immediately grabbed my attention. It made me feel a sense of desperation. My imaged response was two people who’s relationship with each other is at rock bottom and they are both so completely drained that all there is left to do is smoke a cigarette and talk it out. Amanda Handegan, Spring 2022 |
6 sundress slipped |
7 the chilled breeze Andrew Tufano (8) |
8 a six paneled window— |
9 childhood dresser |
10 a rose garden Nick Canton (8) |
11 laughter in the attic Andrew Tufano (6) Yes, time flies in August I was like ohh no worries I have time to enjoy this crazy experience of living and studying abroad, but now time is getting faster and faster, and this haiku has reminded me of that. Although, many times I feel that the people around me do not understand me or do not care enough I will miss some of them that I really love. Marta Viudez Garcia, Spring 2022 I like this haiku because its sad. It gives me the vibe that the person is leaving for a while and they don’t want to say goodbye to their favorite person. This person is in the attic with their favorite person and they want to spend everyday together. Madyson Fritch, Spring 2022 |
12 making her debut Andrew Tufano (3) This haiku has a really special place in my heart. There is something so wonderful about cheering on someone who means a lot to you, and seeing them thrive, especially in college. In a way, we have watched each other grow up. Seeing someone in this new, thriving form, and watching them shine is such an incredible experience. The pride I feel when watching my friends perform is like no other. I can only hope that they see their worth and talent through my eyes. Kelsey Crotz, Spring 2022 |
13 connection, understanding |
14 collodion clouds Mandy Thrasher (6) |
15 green grass |
16 twinkling galaxies Mandy Thrasher (6) In this haiku, I just felt almost a sense of peace. I actually have this whole image of two people (could be best friends, a couple in a relationship, an old married couple, any two people who are very close with one another) sitting outside. Maybe they’re in lawn chairs, maybe they’re sitting on the hood of a car, maybe they’re actually lying down in the grass. They’ve been out there probably for hours talking about life. Those kinds of deep talks that could go on for an eternity but neither person wants the conversation to end. I then picture one of these two people noticing the stars and describing them as these twinkling galaxies, and proposing this question to the other person about “what are they saying in morse code”. It brings such an image of trust and love between these two people that they can have sometimes a philosophical talk with one another. Alex Saviano, Spring 2022 |
17 the emotionality of Marta Viudez Garcia (5) |
18 the singularity of saying yes Marta Viudez Garcia (4) |
19 winter morning trail ride Gwen Klinkey (3) |
20 stacks of hot newspapers |
21 Bud Light bottle cap |
22 grandfather clock Sydney Sinks (4) |
23 XL overnight pads Gwen Klinkey (5) |
24 spring fresh field |
25 pounding feet |
26 lukewarm air |
27 the church bells ring, Camryn Wagner This haiku just screams spring to me. The crocuses, the idea of rebirth, etc. I also like how the church bells can really be up for many different meanings. It could be someone getting baptized, someone getting married, Easter, etc and I like that readers can choose to exert their own meaning on that sound and moment. Gwen Klinkey, Spring 2022 |
28 sandy beaches, party week |
29 garage sale Audrey Button (7) I really like this haiku from Kukai 6 because it made me think about my childhood and how sad garage sales were for me. I would watch all my clothes and toys get sold to new families and I had such bad attachment issues. I remember I would always go through everything after my mom laid it all out in sections and marked the payment on them. I was always searching for things that I gave up that I could take back because I really was not ready for it to be out of my life. So many items from my childhood memories were for sale and that is what is the sad part about garage sales. Andrew Tufano, Spring 2022 I like this haiku because it’s sad but also represents a good childhood. Many of our childhood toys end up at the garage sale for other little kids to enjoy. I like this because it’s sad but also gives new hope. Madyson Fritch, Spring 2022 |
30 scrapbook Audrey Button (6) |
31 the end of the year Chase Nelson (5) |
32 April and October Madyson Fritch (5) There is a common trope between many of the haikus of this week, this is the reference to the question of time and how people live every moment of their lives realizing and thinking about those times that are better than others. Marta Viudez Garcia, Spring 2022 |
33 charm bracelets Madyson Fritch (5) I love this one so so much! I am a pretty sentimental person, and this is such a cute tradition to have. I like the fact that each place you have been stays with you physically. You travelled there initially, but now those places travel with you. It is such a good way of representing how we grow as people and take our experiences with us. You are literally wearing your heart on your sleeve, represented by the bracelet. Kelsey Crotz, Spring 2022 |
34 funky shoes Madyson Fritch (5) |
35 focusing in on |
36 sitting and reflecting Chase Nelson (4) |
37 two sides Kelsey Crotz (6) |
38 creating footprints Kelsey Crotz (6) This poem captures the feeling of leaving the past behind you. It also expresses the futility of trying to live in the past. It is impossible. You can’t follow the footprints. They’re gone. But it also has a hopeful note. The subject is cognizant of this fact. They know they can’t return to these footprints, but they choose to create anyway. Something doesn’t have to be permanent to be beautiful or important. Geo Tapia, Spring 2022 |
39 drinks & laughs Isabel Vincent Again the notion of time seems to be permutable in all of the haikus from this week. Remembering all those good moments that mark positively or negatively our lives, and that after a long time they still appear in our minds as flashes from an old and beautiful past of our long path in life. Marta Viudez Garcia, Spring 2022 |
40 lazy Sunday |
41 cold room Isabel Vincent (10) |
42 exact conversations exact conversations |
43 stasera this evening Alex Saviano (7) |
44 sotto il motto under the motto |
45 ora di andare time to go Alex Saviano (6) |
46 pictures with my friend Geo Tapia (9) |
47 pulling out the stinger |
48 spring rain Nick Canton (8) |
49 a prayer Geo Tapia (5) |
50 I THOUGHT Nick Canton (10) Another one of my favorites from this round of kukai sent me back to all the times my dad would sign my field trip forms in grade school or write a check. He always wrote in capital letters and I know for sure he is one of many dads that write in all capitals as well. I love how this one was also written in capital letters because it made me think that a dad wrote a haiku. I just love how this one was so relatable for everyone in class as well. Andrew Tufano, Spring 2022 I relate personally to this poem. My father is from Ecuador, and his text ALWAYS have some unique quality. Sometimes he’s writing in all caps, sometimes there’s a period after every word, and sometimes the whole thing is in illegible autocorrected Spanish. It’s as if his text are written in a code that makes his tone indiscernible. Geo Tapia, Spring 2022 |
51 tree top silhouettes Nick Canton (9) |
52 i hope my shoes Christian Andrews-Stewart (7) |
53 dreading the moment Christian Andrews-Stewart (3) |
54 making friends Geo Tapia (7) I love this haiku because it is heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time. I really resonated with this haiku because I have definitely gotten so close to someone before that it is almost as if we bled into one person. Other people you would associate as us one as well because there was no me without them, and no them without me. This haiku captures that exact situation, the ultimate falling out, and a new beginning all in three lines and I thought that was really incredible. Amanda Handegan, Spring 2022 |
55 eyes open wide Christian Andrews-Stewart (3) |
56 your hair Geo Tapia (4) |
57 deafening avoidance |
58 I’m sure Geo Tapia (4) |
59 the fairytale Amanda Handegan (4) |
60 she fakes a smile Amanda Handegan (3) Ok me too though, I’m so tired of being in this stage. It’s the weird stage of still being a kid and needing help with life but also having adult reasonability's and problems. My inner child fights my adult decisions of going to bed early and studying every day. I hope that someday I can get to the point of having less stress, so my inner child isn’t yelling at me about having no fun. Emma Antonelli, Spring 2022 |
61 fucked Geo Tapia (6) My car is this haiku. I have had my little Chevy Sonic since 2016. Throughout the many time I have had to get an emissions test, I have failed all of the first tries except for this past one for 2022. My car is wonderful because it always gets the job done, but is the worst behaved when it snows outside as well as just the cold air in general. I love my car because she’s been my first and only car. We have been through so much together and I actually love my car. Her name is Snooki like the character from Jersey Shore because my car is trashy, but always will get the job done. Chase Nelson, Spring 2022 |
62 giggling on the couch over Gwen Klinkey (7) |
63 candles in the dark |
64 salt-water sticky |
65 our initials Geo Tapia (8) This haiku made me smile because my dad writes in all capital letters, and I have always wondered why he does this. I have also noticed that a lot of my male friends and peers also write in capital letters. It’s always an observation that I have wondered about, why is it that most men write in all capital letters? I really do not understand it, and I don’t think that I ever will. Audrey Button, Spring 2022 I think this is the never-ending story of people with common first names, and I live that story too. As someone who has carved their name with their partner into something, there's probably a lot of E&C couple combos out there. While initials aren’t so original, every couple is different and special in multiple ways. Emma Antonelli, Spring 2022 I actually have two readings of this haiku, but both give a feeling to me of pure love and joy. The first reading shows two people walking by a tree and they notice some initials carved into it. The two people think the idea is really cute, and maybe deem the tree as “the love tree”, so they also take out a pocket knife or use a car key, and they carve their initials into the tree right next to the pre-existing ones. They don’t make it bigger or “more important” than the other, because they want it to be a kind of “equal love for all” situation (if that makes any sense at all). The second read I have though is debatably creepy, but I take it in a cute way. So, it’s the same premise of two people passing a tree with initials carved in them (for this sake, let’s say the initials of this couple are MT and RC). They walk past the tree noticing the carving, but stop dead in their tracks as they see the carving is from a different couple whose initials are also MT and RC. The couple who spot this carving might think it could be like a sign from the universe that they were meant to be together, or something cheesy like that. It’s just the way that this haiku is written that the use of the word “by” could mean that the initials are in close relation to some other couple, or could mean originated from some other couple. Alex Saviano, Spring 2022 |
66 smooth stones Geo Tapia (6) |
67 high school lunch table, brown paper bag Camryn Wagner (5) |
68 strange noise from upstairs |
69 birthday queen sash Camryn Wagner (5) |
70 the girl I become |
71 blue Sunday afternoon |
72 shaky cigarette breath |
73 clinking quarters Sydney Sinks (6) |
74 my wings Amanda Handegan (8) |
75 the jungle |
76 early morning Audrey Button (8) |
77 roof right over our heads Randy Brooks (3) |
78 mushroom hunter's mantra Randy Brooks (4) |
79 floating Alex Saviano (5) |
80 paint brushes Nick Canton (3) |
81 county fair Gwen Klinkey (2) |
82 cross-legged in the living room |
83 warm shower steam |
84 fire Kelsey Crotz (8) I think one of the most unsatisfying feelings is after you have an argument with someone, and you think of all the things that you should have said that you didn’t in the moment. Whether it’s because the person who you are arguing with is not letting you talk, or you are trying to keep all the rage in because as soon as you let a little bit out the rest will just come flooding out. I like the imagery of seeing fire in someone’s eyes, I can imagine the passion coming from someone as they just stand silently and listen to someone else. Audrey Button, Spring 2022 |
85 empty bookcase . . . |
86 watching out the window Gwen Klinkey (5) |
87 wishing for once Christian Andrews-Stewart (4) |
88 i looked Geo Tapia (4) |
89 p Geo Tapia (9) |
90 “We are so proud of you!” Isabel Vincent (4) |
91 windows down |
92 blurry air |
93 folded prom photo Emma Antonelli (8) |
© 2022, Randy Brooks • Millikin University
All rights returned to authors upon publication.