Mid-August. When the crickets sing all day in the long grass and the sky invents blue every morning. A lovely time to savor the moments with small bites of haiku, no? That's what I was thinking when we made the proposed schedule for a year of playing with poetic forms, my Poetry Sisters and I. Then someone threw a wrench in it last month, and suggested we try writing haiku in the form of Classified Ads. Because haiku are so easy and all. HA!
Haiku traditionally is meant to be very in-the-moment and visual. Ideally it's one/two clear images that put the reader directly into an experience that is lived. I've seen it described as "one breath poetry", because it's short enough to say in just one breath. Forget the 17 syllables, that's not what's important. Two images, contrasted with a twist, that makes you say "AH!" and opens up a new perspective on a familiar experience. That's what I aim for in writing haiku. Really, what we did could be considered more Senryu. Trisha explains it so well on her blog post here. Webster defines Senryu as " 3-line unrhymed Japanese poem structurally similar to haiku but treating human nature, usually in an ironic or satiric vein."
But put it into a Classified Ad? I didn't think I could do it. Then I started reading what my Poetry Sisters have done, and I was amazed. They are brilliant, really. I just had to throw a couple of my attempts up at the wall to see what would stick. Here you go:
WANTED: iPhonegiven by my real momin her home
CURB ALERT:slug bait, deer baffle, bean polesbusted hoseISO meals;low cholesterolin cheese sauce-all haiku by Andromeda Jazmon
Be sure to find time today to visit the other Classified Haiku poets: Liz, Sara, Tanita, Trisha, Kelly, & Laura. and visit the Friday Poetry Roundup at Tabitha Yeats' blog. Grab a Moment and Enjoy!
14 comments:
You did it, Andi! I am with you on the cheese sauce. Your post title is great, too :-)
Cheese sauce is the answer to everything... will make up for the sting of that busted hose. Don't give up on the garden!
Loved the poem in your title. Unlike all you folks, I don't regularly write haiku, as I find them very difficult. I suppose if I practiced it might get easier.
And I'm with Tabatha. Your "in search of" poem is my favorite. I also find your curb alert quite amusing!
The cheese sauce cracks me up every time. And none of that low-fat cheese, either! You are so right about one-breath haiku, and we should devote a month to writing exactly that. This month WAS fun, though, in an end of summer, what the heck kind of way. :)
I especially like the cheese sauce one. Cholesterol's not my worry (now, at least), but finding anything cheesy that's halfway healthy is my life's quest:>) And I agree with Tabatha about your post title. Mindfulness is both a requirement and reward of writing these kinds of poems. So glad we have each other to force us to post drafts even when we feel a bit panicky about them. The experience is never as bad as it seems it might be...
I can't believe you guys added an additional layer of complexity! But you sure did it. Maybe I'll give one a try too.
I've read a few for this challenge now & everyone is so clever in the way they've approached it. I will repeat, and say I love the title too, and the garden plaint touches lots of memories from the past.
Not sure my first post stuck...
These are great, Andromeda! so much imagery and wit packed into 17 syllables.
Low fat but with cheese sauce. YOU WIN!
Your title is my favorite of the bunch!
Thanks for all the love! Funny but the title came to me easiest of all, while I was rushing to post. And. I do have a love/hate relationship with cheese. 😄
I was thinking about this song sung by the Winans when I wrote the title: http://youtu.be/2NR7JnqNTTI
This is a really fun exercise! Now I'm wondering... if my dog wrote poetry, what would he put in his want ad senryu?
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