Global Haiku • Fall 2024
Dr. Randy Brooks

Like I Never Left

by
Melis Barutcu

I have ttitled my collection Like I Never Left. Throughout the process of reading and writing haiku all semester, I have consistently gravitated to themes of nostalgia and reminiscing. I often wrote reflections on the past and what it feels like to return to something special to you. It has become apparent to me that nostalgia is a feeling everyone has. It's a complex feeling that can manifest itself in fondness, sadness, regret, pride, or specific context with a certain time in one's life. Whether it was recent feelings, childhood memories, or bittersweet times, I often approached writing my haiku by remembering moments and people from my life I cherish.

My signature haiku is related:

back in the kitchen
we swap stories
like I never left

This haiku, as well as many in this collection have significance to me. However, I invite readers to recall their own memories and be reminded of important people in their own lives in whichever direction the haiku takes them.

open classroom window
the remaining sounds
of summer

airplane mode
some silence,
for once

first snow
the last unraked leaves
ice over

backyard patio
summer conversations
over ice

flash flood
the neighborhood kids
eager to splash

ochestra concert
our legs
barely touch

first to the car
on the family trip —
we sneak a kiss

best friend's rooftop
our laughter
asorbed by the stars

halfway through the drive —
did anyone grab
the apple pie?

skin covered
with sidewalk chalk
we rinse off in the sprinkler

first Thanksgiving together
he grabs my hand
under the table

sharing dessert
I always get
the last bite

mom and daughter
stargazing
big and little dipper

kids getting older . . .
leaf piles
go straight in the bag

new neighbors
shoveling snow . . .
one breaks the ice

fall break
playing my piano
out of tune

closet cleanout
my favorite jacket
in 8th grade

back in the kitchen
we swap stories
like I never left