Haiku Kukai 07

Global Haiku • Millikin University • Fall 2020

1

last schedule looking good
heart pounds
CPR

2

I sit and watch
the taffy pullers
pulling on my wallet

3

Mamma Mia
what a great movie
here we go again

4

rainstorm
a flood around
your headstone

5

empty parking lot
resting bitch face
for armor

6

autumn clouds
slip and slide
on wet leaves

7

creek
running water
crystal clear

8

let it come, let it be
loosen your
grip

9

not perfect
sunday night
solace

10

gossip
learning new things
about myself

11

straight A student
the model of success
collecting scars

12

my reflection
she smiles
what's so funny

13

old pond
a frog jumps in
limbs outstretched

14

old pond
a frog jumps in
moving fallen leaves

15

standing in the rain
you want to
undress me

16

trapped
gasping for air
cold shoulder

17

no moon
no sun
i open the curtains

18

an email from dad
title:
        My health . . .

19

dark house
fingers tapping
the backlit keys

20

green light
across my fingers
firefly

21

bowl of apple skins . . .
on the radio,
Christmas music

22

alligator grin
the man in his car
outside of CVS

23

pregnancy test box
female cashier
says nothing

24

city bus, 4:36 pm
hijabi woman
turns toward the southeast

25

that's not who I raised
mother fights
the third diagnosis

26

leaves crunching underfoot
he says my mother's life is
worthless

27

strawberry lemonade
account balance: $8
skipping lunch

28

all neon like it's the 80s
geometric skyline
under a skateboard

29

“it's made for kids”
you say to a child sized adult
at least I get a discount

30

rubber wheels
traction like no other
basically none

31

new moon
the floorboards creak
echolocation

32

opening mail
the country
holds its breath

33

nowhere to hide
all eyes on you
under the microscope

34

404 not found
the man teleports
nowhere

35

tossing out
the heel of a fresh loaf
true independence

36

experimental
toxic serotonin
artificial mind

37

gym rats
wait 3 weeks
the invaders leave

38

Grandpa's bow
saved for
my future husband

39

New Year's countdown
he avoids
her longing gaze

40

you ask
if I'm okay
I breathe you in

41

oh my god is that
a spider in the shower drain?
nope, just my hair

42

you told me
you cared about me . . .
drunk booty call

43

a post-it note
drink water
everytime you look at me

44

orange juice
kids play with
the old hand pump

45

he apologizes
before I vow
never to speak to him again

46

riding a bicycle
blindfolded
hearing threats

47

time to go—
I see the kindergarten
through my phone

48

attic sunrise . . .
covered in dust
aviator sunglasses

49

no tan
on the finger
on her left hand

50

cigarette valentine
the hooker lays
next to the dreamer

51

a butterfly lands
on a flower
just for her

52

the shhh
of the car's wheels
damp pavement

53

mother swoops
to save her child
from approaching geese

54

tiny tadpole tails
struggle
to swim

55

staring
as the sidewalk slowly
disa
     ppe
          ar
             s

56

shaky fingers
deleting old voicemails

after the breakup

57

on Valentine's Day
fridge magnets spell
FuCK
yoU.

58

comforter hanging
on the pergola
drip drip drip

59

two pills every morning
three at night
a 19 year old's pharmacy

60

deleting old contacts
taking out
the trash

61

trick or
treat
me like her

62

happy dance
for a
smiling snack

63

each blink
is heavier
than the last

64

wind
blows through my hair
a day in the park

 

65

cold, numb hands
the price of
carving a pumpkin

66

fuck it
we climb in the hot tub
in our underwear

67

petals rustle
in the breeze
of the AC

68

the leaves lift
and swirl
carry me to you

69

violet perfume
enters my system
we are one

70

glass lake
he follows
their example

71

newfound confidence
applied like
nail polish

72

the thursday
of the year
november

73

confession
on the tip of her tongue
he averts his gaze

74

cryogenic freeze
she awakes to discover
a foreign world

75

the meaning
of life is
42

76

closing pages
part of myself
left between the lines

77

pet store
the old cat
still . . . there

78

fly on my plate
rubbing his arms together
. . . planning something

79

a forklift:
how to move
the neighbor's dead horse

80

half-grown rose
the artist
sets down her brush

81

my mother says
eat the fruit before it spoils
they are already rotten

82

the congregation
a graveyard
as the one next door

83

I shatter the mirror
the monster
multiplies

84

sleepless
I snuggle into my pillow
pretending it's him

85

frog
meditates
on a surfboard

86

ice cream donut
just                a
w a s t e d s p a c e

87

black and white
       the words paint
       a flamboyant picture

88

stone table
ladybug creeping
along
the
edge

89

empty study space
me, myself and i
alone with my

thoughts

90

another hope
crushed
learning to
                      let
                                go

91

laundry basket
holding
the lost and found

92

remote control atop
napkins
last night's party

93

on the closet shelf,
a box
of masks

94

“get out of your mind”
can't stop singing
Lil Jon

95

reality
starts to drift away
inner peace

96

dreaming about you
my mom pulls me
out of the candy store

97

butterfly stills
angel's wings
a big sister's love

 

 

98

when was decency
the unnatural
they hold the door

99

buzzzzzzz
      pretty fast . . .
      for a snail

101

the dead tree
empty nest
hits the ground

102

typing
surprisingly harder
witb one hand

103

feathers floating
a newborn
hatches

104

I compliment his shirt
he sits by me
for the rest of the year

105

pregnancy test
the toilet lid
her pew

106

slumber party
green grout trail
under the faucet

107

shaking wildly
I dance
to the Mii Theme

108

pinned luna moth
wings outstretched
a full moon

109

each passing hour
dirt falls
into the grave

110

sticky note
a love letter
that fits in my palm

111

in the shower
after she shaves
a pause

112

two losses
first you
and then myself

113

even stitches
she reaches down
for the fallen fabric

114

God spot
the melody
                  echoes back at me

115

slight glow
anything is
possible

116

I believe in Women
and God.
Amen.

117

cows munching on grass,
I think of food
and climate change

118

"Dog!"
I yell—
they all snap their heads

119

she tears off her dress
to feel the rain
porch door swinging

120

covid scare
in a home
        far - - - - far - - - - away.

121

she stamps out her
fury
to “this is america”

122

first date
a smile framed
by red lipstick

123

baker's son
looks left, then right
sneaks a taste

124

bubblegum pink
her hair whips
with the bright wind

125

no one out
swingset with no
swings

126

washing dishes
cat
in the sink

127

grey pavement
sky to match
the rain dried up

128

new moon
mindful
of this moment

129

the sinking feeling
home inside her
no place to hide

130

filtered light
through drawn curtains
she's always tired

131

chipped paint
peeling off the wall
was that there before me?

132

sunlit windowsill
succulents breathe life 
into me

133

love isn't real
we haven't discussed us so
love can't exist


© 2020, Randy Brooks • Millikin University
All rights returned to authors upon publication.