Halloween & All Saints Day Matching
Contest Favorites - 5 - Spring 2014 • Millikin University
October 31st
circled on Gram's calendar—
anniversary of his death
Valina Hoang |
Sunday service
his name remembered
with a single toll
Sara Siegfried |
the elderly couple
put on their costumes
Halloween tradition
Daniel Rausch |
she prayed her rosary
for saints she knew
and saints she didn't
Jonathan Rieck |
October 31st
circled on Gram's calendar—
anniversary of his death |
she prayed her rosary
for saints she knew
and saints she didn't |
|
she prayed her rosary
for saints she knew
and saints she didn't
top
quarter champion |
|
TOP half Chamption
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
|
bottom
quarter champion
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
|
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
|
up up
step step
passing pumpkins
on the way to the door
|
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
Danna Herbach |
a parade
of short monsters
and miniature superheroes
Natalie Zelman |
up up
step step
passing pumpkins
on the way to the door
Olivia Cuff |
alone
walking up the steps
the scarecrow comes alive
Brandi DeLeonardo |
|
TOP
half champion
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes |
|
CHAMPION
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
our GRAND Champion!
|
BOTTOM
half champion |
dark of the night
daring escapades
tonight I am someone else
Trista Smith |
bubbles blossom and buttercup
my roomates and I
make matching tutus
Mikayla Shaw |
superheroes and enemies
collaborate
a common goal—candy
Mckenzie Peck |
happy halloween
cackles the pumpkin
on repeat
Alec Campbell |
dark of the night
daring escapades
tonight I am someone else |
superheroes and enemies
collaborate
a common goal—candy |
|
dark of the night
daring escapades
tonight I am someone else
top
quarter champion |
|
BOTTOM
half champion
dark of the night
daring escapades
tonight I am someone else
|
bottom
quarter champion
crunching leaves sound the alarm
little monsters
coming for your candy
|
my luck has
forever run out
adjacent black cat
|
crunching leaves sound the alarm
little monsters
coming for your candy
|
yellow porch light
straight line of railing
curved line of cat
Taylor Hagerdorn |
my luck has
forever run out
adjacent black cat
Rebecca Coutcher |
crunching leaves sound the alarm
little monsters
coming for your candy
Erin O'Brien |
yellow leaves fall
a stranger rounds the corner
I break into a run
Alexandria Wilson |
© 2014, Randy Brooks • Millikin University. All rights returned to authors upon publication.
is thirteen
too old
for tricks and treats?
Deja Finley |
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up
Jonathan Rieck |
no desire for
dressing up on the 31st
growing up or growing old?
Valina Hoang |
costumes and candy
scattered about
soft snores
Sara Siegfried |
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up |
no desire for
dressing up on the 31st
growing up or growing old? |
|
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up
top
quarter champion |
|
TOP half Chamption
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up
|
bottom
quarter champion
college halloween
no one
knocks
|
October 30th
our pumpkin
still pristine
|
college halloween
no one
knocks
|
October 30th
our pumpkin
still pristine
Natalie Zelman |
sweet tooth
orange, yellow, white
my favorite holiday
Olivia Cuff |
college halloween
no one
knocks
Danna Herbach |
pumpkin carving
scariest thing ever
—student loans
Danna Herbach |
|
TOP
half champion
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up
|
|
CHAMPION
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
|
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
BOTTOM
half champion |
spooky scary skeletons
won't you join
them for a stroll?
Alec Campbell |
the old cemetery
illuminated in the moonlight . . .
enter if you dare
Sara Siegfried |
redrum, redrum
endless scary movie
the carpet shifts beneath
Alexandria Wilson |
pulse racing
need to get out of here
haunted house
Rebecca Coutcher |
the old cemetery
illuminated in the moonlight . . .
enter if you dare |
redrum, redrum
endless scary movie
the carpet shifts beneath |
|
redrum, redrum
endless scary movie
the carpet shifts beneath
top
quarter champion |
|
BOTTOM
half champion
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
|
bottom
quarter champion
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
|
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
|
abandoned lot
teenagers dabble
in things they shouldn't
|
clutching her bag
scary decorations
do it for the candy
Brandi DeLeonardo |
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
Daniel Rausch |
abandoned lot
teenagers dabble
in things they shouldn't
Mckenzie Peck |
sixty pumpkins
in the back of a van
the hammer waits
Danna Herbach |
October 31st
circled on Gram's calendar—
anniversary of his death
Valina Hoang |
Sunday service
his name remembered
with a single toll
Sara Siegfried |
the elderly couple
put on their costumes
Halloween tradition
Daniel Rausch |
she prayed her rosary
for saints she knew
and saints she didn't
Jonathan Rieck |
|
|
|
|
a carrot
in the midst of
superheroes
Danna Herbach |
a parade
of short monsters
and miniature superheroes
Natalie Zelman |
up up
step step
passing pumpkins
on the way to the door
Olivia Cuff |
alone
walking up the steps
the scarecrow comes alive
Brandi DeLeonardo |
I liked these pairs because they have a cute and funny image. There is a playful kind of attitude in them, too. I really like the first haiku because it's really humorous. I like the fact that they unfold another part of the story in each line. By the end, you can see the whole picture and I like how it comes in gradual steps. Erin
I really enjoyed this haiku because I love how the child in the haiku is so independent. Many children want to be their favorite super hero or disney character and this child wants to stand out and be his favorite vegetable. At such a young age he does not want to conform to the what the other children are wearing for halloween. I was always my favorite princess or a cat for halloween but I wish I could of been more creative with my costumes during halloween. Mikayla
I enjoy this pairing for the whimsical and playful aspect of children just going trick-or-treating, dressed as they want to. I also like that both of the haikus end with the aspect of an abundant amount of superheroes. Another aspect I like about the haiku is the exciting vibe that they give off, despite the large amount of people that are outside. The haiku are sweet and make me happy. Olivia |
This pair is my favorite because it highlights walking, which is a big action on Halloween. Whether you are trick-or-treating or attending a haunted house, walking with fear (most likely) is prevalent. Each haiku also mentions a Halloween staple item, whether it be pumpkins or a scarecrow. Introducing these items helps the reader imagine the holiday in all its entirety .Rebecca |
a parade
of short monsters
and miniature superheroes |
superheroes and enemies
collaborate
a common goal—candy |
|
|
I thought that these two haiku were a good pair. They both talk about superheroes and are both equally as cute. When I read the top haiku, I can picture a group of children who are free to roam around their neighborhood for one night. As a gang, they all go to each house asking for candy, and then retreat to another house. The process continues until their bags are full and the mission is finally accomplished. I am picturing these children with various capes and masks that conceal their identity. The second haiku written is a little bit more playful. There are still superheroes, but there are also enemies as well. I can picture children having fake fights where nobody wants to be the one to lose. When the Halloween night begins however, they forget about their differences and remember about the one and only important thing about October 31st—candy. They go to each house, extremely giddy, and then by the end of the night they compare candy. The competition has justly changed to who has the most and best candy for the night. Daniel |
|
|
dark of the night
daring escapades
tonight I am someone else
Trista Smith |
bubbles blossom and buttercup
my roomates and I
make matching tutus
Mikayla Shaw |
superheroes and enemies
collaborate
a common goal—candy
Mckenzie Peck |
happy halloween
cackles the pumpkin
on repeat
Alec Campbell |
|
|
|
|
yellow porch light
straight line of railing
curved line of cat
Taylor Hagerdorn |
my luck has
forever run out
adjacent black cat
Rebecca Coutcher |
crunching leaves sound the alarm
little monsters
coming for your candy
Erin O'Brien |
yellow leaves fall
a stranger rounds the corner
I break into a run
Alexandria Wilson |
I liked this matched pair a lot because although the haikus give off very different feelings, it is quite eerie to me that both of the authors wrote about a cat and placed their cats on the third line of each of their haikus. I really like how these two haiku mirror each other and simply the fact that they are both so similar is strange which fits the topic of this kukai as well. I really hope another matched pair like this happens again because I found it very interesting and it helped me look deeper into both of the haikus to see what further meaning I could discover since on a simple level they were very similar. Allie |
I liked the differences in tone between these two. While they both mention the topic of fallen leaves, the topic is treated in very different ways. The first one has more of an innocent, happy tone to it, while the second one is mysterious and kind of creepy. I feel like this pair is a good example of the two extremes of Halloween celebrators. On the one hand, you have the cute little kids in costumes that are just looking for fun times and candy. On the other hand, you have the people that go out of their way to scare others on Halloween and to make it the most terrifying holiday that it can possibly be. I like that people of all ages are able to enjoy the holiday by making it what they want it to be. I don't know, I think that's kind of cool. Mackenzie |
© 2014, Randy Brooks • Millikin University. All rights returned to authors upon publication.
is thirteen
too old
for tricks and treats?
Deja Finley |
wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up
Jonathan Rieck |
no desire for
dressing up on the 31st
growing up or growing old?
Valina Hoang |
costumes and candy
scattered about
soft snores
Sara Siegfried |
This pair was one of my favorites. Growing up is inevitable and terrifying. Halloween is something taken for granted by a lot of kids; they rarely think of it being socially unacceptable for them to participate in when they get older. This pair does a fine job at explaining just a bit of the dilemma: too old?, a sigh of remorse. It’s a minute issue but a downfall of growing up nonetheless. Taylor |
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wistfully watching
children's pealing laughter—
too old to dress up |
no desire for
dressing up on the 31st
growing up or growing old? |
|
|
While I chose one of my own to talk about, this pair was SPOT on. I really enjoyed this pair because it showed the complementary side of each scenario. These two haiku bounced off of each other. While my haiku had a sense of some happiness (wistfully, laughter focus), the second one (by Valina, one of my favorite writers) shows a mood that I also know—I never have a desire to dress up, and haven't for years, because I feel like I've become too old to partake in that pleasure. I have definitely felt these both on Halloween nights when I've been home, and Valina captures the essence of the matter when she poses her final question. I loved this question at the end of her haiku because people may think that they ask the same thing, but they don't. Growing up and growing old are totally different, and her juxtaposition of these aging processes really gave this haiku a special finesse. Jonathan |
October 30th
our pumpkin
still pristine
Natalie Zelman |
sweet tooth
orange, yellow, white
my favorite holiday
Olivia Cuff |
college halloween
no one
knocks
Danna Herbach |
pumpkin carving
scariest thing ever
—student loans
Danna Herbach |
|
|
|
|
spooky scary skeletons
won't you join
them for a stroll?
Alec Campbell |
the old cemetery
illuminated in the moonlight . . .
enter if you dare
Sara Siegfried |
redrum, redrum
endless scary movie
the carpet shifts beneath
Alexandria Wilson |
pulse racing
need to get out of here
haunted house
Rebecca Coutcher |
|
|
|
|
clutching her bag
scary decorations
do it for the candy
Brandi DeLeonardo |
the princess
holds hands with the ghost
parents smile behind
Daniel Rausch |
abandoned lot
teenagers dabble
in things they shouldn't
Mckenzie Peck |
sixty pumpkins
in the back of a van
the hammer waits
Danna Herbach |
I chose this pair as my favorites because I love the imagery and memoires presented within these six lines. The first reminds me of my childhood years of trick-or-treating. I was always too scared to go up to a house with scary decorations or with someone dressed up as a witch or something scary. I would always make my parents walk with me to get candy or skip the house all together. The second also reminds me of being a child and dressing up. One year I was snow white. I had a beautiful dress that my aunt sent to me, and shoes and a bow to match. I loved my costume and remember crying when I had to take it off. This haiku also reminds me of my older years when I would stay home and pass out candy. I also enjoyed seeing the little kids toddling up our front steps and holding out their little pumpkins anxiously awaiting their treat. Aside from the memories I think this pair accurately represents Halloween. Children are excited for weeks to dress up and run around their neighborhoods gathering candy, and parents are excited for their children. They are all smiles when they see their "little ones" dressed up and growing up. Overall this is a beautiful pair of haiku. Sara |
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