thirty-two haiku
With the Name of the Gracious and Compassionate
Creator of the Heavens and the Earth
In March of 2003, I lost my apartment on Corsa Avenue in the Bronx. I had lived there for almost four years, occupying the ground floor of a red-brick row-house owned by a friend. I was unable to pay the rent and was many months in arrears. My friend had been overly patient, but he too had bills to pay. I had to go, so that he could rent the space to a paying tenant.
Moving is always a traumatic experience for me. I am in the habit of carrying numerous boxes of books and papers, accumulated over years of unfinished writings and perhaps excessive book purchases and magazine subscriptions. I usually own only a few items of furniture. When funds are limited (or non-existent) and time is short, the stress of moving – of choosing what to take, what to discard, what might be placed with friends or in storage for temporary safekeeping – is overwhelming.
For whatever reason, in February and March of 2003, I found writing haiku a practical method of stress-reduction. Almost none of the haiku written at that time had anything to do with packing and moving. I wrote whatever came to mind, and whatever came to mind was usually anything but packing and moving. Once I was on the road – traveling by interstate bus as usual – what came to mind was more often about the journey, a spring journey, from the still wintry climate of the Bronx to the greenery and warmth of North Carolina.
Most of these haiku were written in February, in the Bronx. Only a few were written on the journey south, or after I had arrived in Pinehurst, North Carolina, to stay with my parents for a few months. A few days after settling in, I looked out a window and saw the waning crescent moon – and wrote what was to be the last haiku of my journey.
There are five more haiku added at the end. Two haiku (in this color) I had sent in an email to a good friend, Steve Williams, and his two haiku (in this color) in response. I went by the name “Hakeem” at the time (and may do so again, soon). The fifth appended haiku was written after I had gotten settled in my parents’ house, looked out the window and was surprised by a full moon (if I remember correctly).
The haiku are not grouped, chronologically or otherwise. They are arranged in alphabetical order – a meaningless arrangement, but one that spares me the bother of trying to figure out how to group them or of trying to remember in what order I wrote them. Read and ponder them in whatever order you prefer.
a day of hot love
i’m awake all night scratching
kisses from the sun
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
an excited bunch
what could be so important
little birds in flight
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
attacked from the north
came under heavy snow-fire
no casualties
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
being evicted
brown leaf falls tumbling to earth
one leaf thousandth leaf
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
big bear loves his honey
only it’s the bees’ honey
suicide bombers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
books and magazines
dusty piles reach the ceiling
what a racket
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
city under siege
warm relief breaks foe’s cold wrath
snow melts away
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cold help for cold bones
using the oven for warmth
odorless killer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
head back mouth agape
blessed by spring’s fresh melting snow
gurgling sewer drain
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
his first airplane flight
the plane ran down the runway
and jumped off the ground
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i can feel your hate
squeeze these tears out of my face
and freeze-blow my bones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i keep shoveling
snow floats down behind me
in hot pursuit
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i see your warm skin
let me close my eyes and stroke
the sweet taste of brown
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
i’m being pursued
silent invisible foe
i keep shoveling
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
it’s lost i left it
small precious thing far behind
go back go back
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
large bugs ranged in lines
three abreast small large long squat
inbound lanes backed up
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
oh where have you been
so fat when i saw you last
dying crescent moon
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
push the rock uphill
it rolls all the way back down
today i shovel snow
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
quiet fluff falling
the color of innocence
the sound of death
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
she is not green yet
through brown virginia forests
my bus plows southward
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
show-off heroic
throws himself on the grenade
thinks he’s somebody
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
small tag on big toe
please dispose of properly
thoughtful suicide
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
someone please call me
i promise to answer and
not say oh it’s you
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the highway is ice
my car spinning uncontrolled
oh the view the view
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the ocean i braved
crash flipped and rolled me over
roaring in triumph
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
these years my privates
grant me such noble pleasure
on the toilet bowl
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
this person on screen
looking at me and talking
to a camera
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
through my feet i hear
fur and bones beneath the snow
ka-runch step step step
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
today i’ve traveled
to beaches lakes mountains
sitting watching bored
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
verbose poetic
heaven-and-earth’s creator
orchids and wart hogs
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
visit me at night
watch over me i need you
star-pierce the dark void
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
who is that cute child
bright and lively such white teeth
on TV no poop
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
to relieve my stress
i composed a few haiku
and sent them to friends
with love from hakeem
(i’ve arranged them in order
alphabetical)
Hakeem
i love your flavor
sharing such joyful wisdom
muse with a shadow
at home i’m busy
for rare work they call this temp
do nothing get paid
Steve
moon in my window
calls to me i must go out
moon in the treetops
4/18/2003
Lester A. Knibbs / “Hakeem”
Dhul-Hijjah 1423 – Muharram 1424
March-April 2003
Which Way Is Up? 