Global Haiku • Fall 2019
Dr. Randy Brooks

A Child of the Universe

by
Madeline Wilson

for mom, molly, rachel, nikki, johannah, my sisters,
and all of the people that see the stardust in me. 

you bring the light into my corner of the universe.

author’s note

when i first started on my haiku journey, i was unaware of the potential magic contained within three little lines. heck, when i started, i was under the assumption that a haiku had to be compromised of three lines of 5-7-5. as i worked through the past few months studying the art of haiku, my eyes have been opened to the power of word choice, image building, and tapping into universal experiences. haiku can encapsulate the simplicity and complexity of the human condition. haiku can also encapsulate the simplicity and complexity of the natural world around us. that’s why i fell in love with haiku—it has a unique ability to bend and mold into whatever it needs to be.

my collection, titled “child of the universe”, is a raw, honest survey of the human experience. the haiku selected take a dive headfirst into the experiences that make humans unique—love, loss, joy, pain. i was unflinching in my composition of these haiku because this universe herself is unflinching when it deals us the hands we are given. and despite it all, despite the ugly and the hurt, we are made of stardust. a child of this great, big universe. we are made of the same materials that compose the cosmos.

as you experience this collection, i encourage you to take a step back and find yourself in a space that allows for raw emotions to feel the air around you. it is in this space that the haiku will speak to you most. whether reading this collection is an exercise in comradery or in empathy building, i hope you lean into the safe, warm embrace of the universe when you conclude. welcome, star dust sister, to my little corner of the universe. enjoy your stay.

about the author

Madeline Wilson is a junior English Education major pursuing a Special Education endorsement. She is from Mokena, IL. When not at Millikin, she can be found baking cookies with her mom, getting emotional over the beauty and success of her friends, or fighting the urge to buy more concert tickets. She is forever and always missing her cat at home and wishing there was more time in the world to read a good book next to a cozy fire.

snow angels in the yard
right next to your
grave

tea tree oil
bon iver
reaching for some sort of peace

day 17 of the Lexapro
I start to feel
my lungs again

champagne supernova
the chord progression
reminds me of you

wrinkly Led Zeppelin shirt
I see you 
everywhere I go

when he pulls away
my lips taste like
sugar

day old braids 
the touch of yesterday 
still lingers on my skin

what's your biggest fear?
he asks
a warm hand on my thigh

Chicago skyline,
take me in your arms
and never let me go 

painful goodbyes
objects in mirror are closer
than they appear

a kiss on the nose
home is wherever 
she is

i hate that i 
need You
dependent clause

old city streets
are the ghosts in you
or me?

the world is collapsing
the only thing keeping me going
dissonant jazz chord

knees touch
the world turns
upside down

his hand swings by his side
and suddenly
my hand swings too

Christmas eve coffee
a sweet elixir—
everything else melts away

my fragments
glued to yours
an imperfect mosaic

fried green tomatoes
family and friends
coexist

the world spins backwards
drinking too fast
I am the good wife

midnight stargazing
I rip open my chest
hoping you’ll see the real me