Wade’s 101: Haiku retrospective 23
By Wade Kwon[Share on Twitter]
- attacks from within
Bullets and blades can
hurt, but a tiny microbe
can fell a giant. - style points
Points to be given
for appearance, poise, dance moves
and elocution. - occupy sanity
Worse than protestors
are citizens trying to
suppress their neighbors. - not a thousand words
The picture on the
mantel reminds me of what’s
truly important. - gobbler performance review
Memo to turkeys:
Please report to barnyard for
final, final test. - orchard of pickers
Daintily they snatched
the apples, where pros would have
gone for sheer volume. - reverse groundhog day
The hermit comes out,
not to check his shadow, but
to forage for beers. - bowing to pressure
Practice time sped by
as the novice sawed through notes
on the violin. - doom buggy
Starts with empty cubes
and progresses into full-
blown sick day of aches. - beyond blessings
Be thankful for those
who are thankless. Help them find
ways to be thankful. - shoppers’ delight
The lure of savings
proves too great, even for those
who should be asleep. - the question that is never quite settled
Half the state pulls one
way, half the state … the other.
Tug of endless war. - the wood pile
Cords of wood await
their turn to burn brightly in
a warm fireplace. - a light dusting
Frantic were the moms
who sought the last loaf of bread,
the last thing of milk. - forecast of madness
Unseasonably
warm fall turns to snowy winter.
Where are my mittens? - answer hazy
The crystal ball took
a deep breath before getting
to the misfortune. - jangle all the way
Radio station
that plays Christmas music in
October? Humbug! - mario 2011
Plumber turned fighter
laid off; job now handled by
remote-controlled drone. - dear santa 2011
Just help those who need
it most, and bring joy and love
to children worldwide. - honest labor
People who do real
work don’t have time to debate
whether it’s real work. - keys to success
Concern for others
over self. Leave things better
than how you found them. - tapping pencils
Restless students eye
the clock and calendar in
wait for Christmas break. - the pizza dilemma
The more diners, the
more time it takes to select
three damn toppings. - the backyard invader
Without regard for
boundaries, the silent scout
leaps atop the car. - what hope love
Is the hope for love
a quest, or is it hope that
love brings on its own? - santa drawl
The redneck Santa
spat before the next youngun
hopped on for a spell. - winterizing
Extra layers can
make the difference, whether
from wool or from fat. - then one foggy christmas eve in alabama
Rudolph, with your nose
so bright, won’t you hand over
your papers or else? - first world blues
The first worlders had
entangled themselves in a
slew of petty woes. - over the fence
The weekly exchange
of hellos maintains the truce
between old neighbors. - the book that never was
Fifty thousand words
deliver a tawdry tale
on a blank tablet. - if mistletoe could talk
If mistletoe could
talk, it would complain about
bad breath all around. - i had this moment of clarity
I had this moment
of clarity, but it left
with sobriety. - a random assortment of dueling pairs
Every day brings a
bowl game with one so-so squad
against another. - sleigh pre-flight check
First thing to go if
Santa’s sleigh is too heavy?
All those batteries. - lyrical stroll
The songmaker found
the words to say “I love you”
walking to the curb. - rolling clouds on the horizon
Waves of cumulus
surge in the distance as I
scan for turbulence. - family circus
Little boy wanders
neighborhood when he should be
fetching Mommy’s beer. - peanuts
Gang of juvenile
philosophers hangs out with
fanciful beagle. - garfield
Lasagna-loving
cat spends lifetime chasing off
bachelor owner’s gals. - joy
A heart beats with new
fervor, open to the world
in all its glory. - calvin and hobbes
Rambunctious lad and
wise tiger explore cosmos
from their own backyard. - doonesbury
Generations of
well-spoken, wry families
in the throes of life. - the boondocks
Huey and Riley
find suburbia too white.
(Prefer the cartoon.) - the far side
Blah blah blah Ginger
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
blah Ginger blah blah. - those who never stray far
Those who never stray
far from home know the best spots
of a tiny pond. - the brick pile
The load feels lighter
after unloading burdens
from the duffel bag. - the year of magical doing
Come along with me,
not to bear witness, but to
share in the journey. - in the guise of a huckster
The cheery come-on
masks a nefarious goal,
to sell crap to you. - a frosty departure
The famed snowman left
in a cloud of flakes for a
less chilly hideout. - an investment of brain power
The crossword puzzle
didn’t seem as alluring
as the TV set. - evolution of eating
Some went hungry. Then
most were fed badly. Must weigh
freshness with access. - the new new south
Traditions define
and strangle a defiant
chunk of this country. - the see-through forest
Up the trail, he could
see the ridge through the trees stripped
of any pretense. - patterns of tan
The coffee cup held
both beauty and warm/topped with
an intricate stamp. - cheering with an accent
The cries rang out clear
all over the state. Roll Tide!
Or is it Reauxll Tide? - roll to victory
Bama’s pluck and grit
have writ her name in crimson
flame. Fight on, fight on! - ignorance is
When we have no more
questions to answer, will we
remain curious? - loltrends
One meme said to the
other meme, “Start copying
me!” Each was unique. - pay no attention to the man behind the digital curtain
Dorothy and her
friends were surprised to find a
jive robot instead. - the unfolding of the universe
The physics students
discovered laws of motion
while remaining still. - the infectiousness of youth
Dreams fly as fast as
shooting stars, hurled by young minds
unhindered by doubt. - to be memorialized
Not all leaders were
saints, but revered for rising
above human sins. - the covert conversation
Will no one bring up
the elephant in the room
that’s about to move? - undomesticated animals
Domesticated
pets get fat, while feral ones
are doomed to sad lives. - modern inconveniences
Long lines, bad signal,
manmade ingredients, high
gas prices, boredom. - julie
A childhood friend grows
into a fighter, only
to lose to cancer. - make way for dragons
From a distant shore,
the winged beast swoops in to eat
any stray townsfolk. - an endless supply of hot water
Teacups rattle at
the prospect of liquid and
leaves stirring within. - virtual villages
Door to door in the
cyber communities means
you can’t scrounge sugar. - loose lips
The office gossip
thrives on chaos and lives for
schadenfreude and snark. - the persistent caller
He would ring up the
clerk throughout the week, only
to find the line dead. - the warrior class
The soldiers trudge through
their ordered routine of long
days, boredom and shock. - the accidental lab of the fifth dimension
Somehow, the students
found laws of the universe
heretofore unknown. - pastry crash
The sculpted tower
of sugar shatters into
bitter, sweet pieces. - the lambs have stopped screaming
The flock of fluffy
sheep crowded toward the streams of
grass on the bare plain. - the state of dreams
Some dream of escape,
others of the pa/and some
see nothing asleep. - if she could talk to the animals
The caregiver wraps
booboos on scraped paws and sings
of quiet jungles. - failure by proxy
Not so much bang and
whimper, but fading passion
and indifference. - behind the storm
They crawled out, grateful
to be alive and thinking
about death’s house call. - the loneliest group in the world
The broken parties
pulled up their chairs to confide
tales of hiding out. - tech city
Beings from the near
future swarmed the terminals
to download updates. - the real contest
The battle is not
on the turf but on the air,
dueling commercials. - a sudden bout of homesickness
Strange smells and noisy
motors, loud neighbors and cramped
closet. Time to flee. - woman of the hour
She let the party
and the presents slip by for
time with friends and fam. - the last pile of leaves
Bits of autumn strewn
about the lawn, stragglers in
a too warm winter. - the long lunch
The rush passed as the
diners evaporated,
leaving us to chat. - the meaning of gifts
This one came from the
drugstore, the others from the
bargain bin at Zayre. - consumption
A sickness worldwide
that causes blockage of the
soul with gross clutter. - cupid 2012
He’s busy adding
to his Pinterest boa/lost
his bow in poker. - fallen diva
Beautiful voice cracks
with the passage of time. No
one can hear her dirge. - love is in the despair
Longing makes love both
sweeter and bittersweet, a
tender trap with heart. - halloween for singles
Bags of unsold sweets
fill shopping carts for true love
in lonely bellies. - learning a lesson in learning
Repetition builds
understanding. Thus, repeat
it so they get it. - the notes still ring
The sheet music fades
from sight as the lights go out.
The chorus sings on. - domesticity 2012
Her perfect life came
not from a fairy tale but
a Pinterest board. - filters
Firewall, Caller
ID, peephole, V-chip, bleeped
words, pop-up blockers. - the gauntlet of fame
Star exits limo
to meet fans, stroll the carpet
and talk on TV. - delivering lol
One silly picture
carries joy to strangers who
like to watch online. - get inspired
The muse crashed the dawn
reverie while hung over
from her carousing. - the scars run together
After a while, the
scars run together like a
tough skin tapestry.
• • •
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