5-7-5

My child has a stuffy nose. This means he is waking up much more often. This in turn means that I (and my poor wife) are waking up more often. It also means that we have to suction his nose with one of those little bulb things...which he doesn't like and in fact screams a type of scream that no parent should be subject to...after one of his nose clearing sessions last night I literally felt like I should be turning myself in to Child Protective Services. That is really neither here nor there except to say that I am tired. Because of this I am going to subject you to some Haiku's that I have written as a new dad because I don't have the energy to come up with anything new to talk about this week and these were already written and so could be cut and pasted below.

A few things on Haiku. I am not exceptionally good at writing them, but they are my favorite type of poetry. To me, they are like a snapshot of a moment and if written well really convey the sense of that moment in a way nothing else can. They are often described as being combinations of three lines, 5-7-5 syllable structure, are about a season, and including a cutting word. However, people who study these things conclude that in order to stay true to the Japanese it is more accurate for a Haiku to include a structure of 2-3-2 with the syllables in question being accented syllables and can include up to 5 more unaccented syllables for a grand total of no more than 12. I haven't quite got the full hang of accented vs unaccented syllables or the whole "cutting word" thing. If you are interested in learning more, my wife bought me an awesome book explaining the whole Haiku thing in very small words and easy to understand sentences. Ok, enough writing...hope you enjoy!


Five months
Chubby fingers grasp
Unlimited potential
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Eyes Droop
Headless chicken guides
Tired feet
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Toothless Smile
Small Fingers: Five
Simple affection
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High pitched
Frantic sirens call
Awake!
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Blaring baby Cry
Curses muttered under breath
Sleepy eyes open
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Not a haiku….but counts up to six and back down to one (syllables)

Four
A.M.
Biting Cold
Rushed Arrival
Clacking of Keyboards
Grey Walls Swallow Me Whole
Stopping for a Breath
Giggle echoes
Through the Din
Missing
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