Global Haiku • Spring 2017
Dr. Randy Brooks

Loving Memories

by
Kate Gebultowicz

I decided to name my collection Loving Memory, because many of my haiku represent a part of my past. I like to write from an observation point of view. That said, everything I write about come from something I've seen or experienced personally. In the process of forming my haiku I used my surrounding environment to guide me as well as my emotional state. Many times, I used my past experiences and correlated them to objects around me. Each haiku should allow the readers to from various images that would enhance the feeling of the haiku as well as the reader's connection to it.  Therefore, my title represents the memories that were written about through my haiku. I added Loving to the title, because these memories are bittersweet. Everything that has happened in my life or someone else's occurred for a reason. We learn from our experiences and that's why it's lovely because we grow from them and reflect.

The order of my haiku in this book represent the transition of life from a young child to an adult. The last rengay ties the book up by focusing on a child, because we always reflect on things in our life. We can't consider the future but we can look back at our lives and reminisce about it. Towards the end of the book the haiku represents various memories where a person is hiding their pain or just living in the moment. It goes in and out but focuses on things someone might experience from a child to an adult. I also dive into break ups which is a typical experience that everyone goes through. Therefore, it's a relatable topic that people think about but may not say exactly how they are feeling. That's why I dove into it so that I can be the voice of those that don't have the voice to express these feelings.

In all, my haiku range from happiness to anger. People go through many stages in life of various emotions and it's just the way life is. At the end of the day we must look past the negative and remember the pure happiness we felt during our childhood. We go through struggles but life is amazing and in it we can form lovely memories.

the girl cooks
in the kitchen
for her doll

morning breakfast
we sit
looking at the sun

riding his bike
the boy forgets
where he's going

morning cough
mother's cure
a cup of tea

mom's baked goods
sit in the kitchen
just for guests

back home
all the chores
on my list

the tapping on the window
soon becomes . . .
the pianist's tempo

initialing the paper
blank mind
blank paper

the moon light
guides us
reliving last night

motioning her over
he reaches for her waist
guiding her feet

whispering I love you
his eyes look
somewhere else

holding her breath
     she let it go
           on him

she said no
nobody believed her
pieces broke

hidden eyes
holding the truth behind
the sun glasses

church bells ring
grandma no longer
in her seat

never whispering
a word—
the old willow tree

Rain boots

one step at a time
over the lumpy stones
gushing river water

rain pounds against
the bedroom window—
spring announcing its arrival

the little girl grabs
her rain boots

drowning in the
shallow puddle
a single daisy

feet deep
in the water

she snatches a
fallen bucket
hoping to catch the drops

squishing the puddle
within her shoes