Wade’s 101: Haiku retrospective 44
By Wade Kwon[Share on Twitter]
- fanfare for the working man
No vacations, no
rest. In this country, every
day is Labor Day. - wing it and smile
Their plans were simply
to hang out and see where the
day and night take them. - the day the dream died
The only country
they’ve ever known is sending
them far, far away. - a tiny step of faith
It takes some courage
to care. About someone else,
a cause, a friendship. - paintings and knickknacks around the block
The artists set up
shop in bodegas and bars
and crowded storefronts. - the reckoning
Mother Nature came
to collect on all debts, past,
present and future. - grizzly hug
I hold her tightly
so none of the affection
slips away from us. - peak anxiety
Money woes, watching
weight, spousal tiffs, work headaches
and a wobbly faith. - hurricant
The depression limps
closer. Even the storm is
tired of raining. - kids today
With their selfies and
their avocado toast and
their vocal fry. Feh! - abuse your illusion
Are we taking steps
to live our dreams or faking
it as usual? - should’ve ordered moscow mules
A snowflake and a
cuck walk into a bar. They
gag on White Russians. - hypocritical oaf
He asked others to
stop posting political
junk. Then he does it. - unending embrace
I hold on tight to
her with all the love I can
muster. I hold on. - the end of privacy
Eventually,
the hackers get our eighth grade
diaries and rhymes. - caravan of crazy
Slowly winding up
the interstate, yelling at
each annoying jerk. - hand in hand, step by step
We take time to mark
the little milestones as we
share the path forward. - woman’s best friend
Her sidekick wanted
nothing more than a few pats
and full loyalty. - shakacon
Nerds would gather to
discuss the finer points of
picking up Klingons. - unregulated monsters
Supervisors looked
with disdain at free spirits
who slipped through somehow. - keeping score by the decibel
Shouts rang out up and
down the street as each team’s fans
groaned and cheered their fates. - teach to the test
Learn to fill in those
bubbles in the allotted
time or get left back. - politicize everything
Let no gesture go
unremarked and no statement
go undissected. - before the notification bell
An announcement on
their relationship status
was being crafted. - be labor
Each hopeful waited
to put their time and their back
into a day’s work. - the check isn’t in the mail
The mailbox was a
yawning chasm of sordid
promises, no hope. - the instruction manual
Out the birth canal
and into the world and then
into the cold ground. - the incoherent stranger
She came a’babblin’
to the funeral service
with pillows for shoes. - the crank
Once confined to the
basement, the crabby gent ran
for a Senate seat. - loves horses and her boyfriend, too
She’s a good girl, loves
her mama. Loves Jesus and
America, too. - the cost of doing nothing
While we bicker through
the same arguments on the
same issues, folks die. - the nicer dollar store
The nicer dollar
store has better things on sale
and fewer crime scenes. - pearl power
After 12 years, I
still get a thrill when hitting
the Publish button. - a partner in prime
We take on the day
with no agenda other
than to laugh out loud. - going to unchurch
Worship football. Pray
to brunch. Honor thy binge watch
and thy extra sleep. - modern political discourse
Angry tweet, then a
gif meme, racist comments and
whataboutism. - co-bucket list
Whatever we do,
wherever we roam, we seek
the funnest of fun. - the coolest festival on earth
He would sail down to
Antarctica to sing to
the penguins and seals. - medium-distance relationship
They traded sexts by
erotic semaphore to
let their freak flags fly. - no quarters necessary
Tap keys and grow plants
and zap spaceships and rock hard
and score lots of points. - the healing power of puppers
The world is toast. But
at least I can look at dogs
on the Internet. - natty nuptials
The bride wore a pearl
strapless gown with beaded trim.
The groom wore a tux. - race track report
The cars turned and turned
and turned and turned and turned and
turned and turned and turned. - no more facades
I want to be my
best self and my worst self for
the one I adore. - to the bunkers
Are there really good
people still left in the world
or are they hiding? - movie night
We sit close in the
dark, hand in hand, eyes on the
screen and each other. - cupcake gigante
In the small pan rose
a small cake. A small knife spread
a schmear of icing. - months to live
The doctor put down
her charts and broke the bad news
with a steady voice. - country music staples
Trucks, Jesus, women,
beer, dogs, heartbreak, the outdoors,
Mama ‘n’ Daddy. - a rapist in the making
He thought nothing of
his many suggestive texts,
his whispered come-ons. - not too many followers
My cult is a weird
mishmash of clean eating and
freaky solo sex. - burn it all down
Abusers always
have a way of finding blame
for all except them. - boo all day every day
Nothing is scary
enough for Halloween when
life is a horror. - imaginary numbers
How do we measure
the unmeasurable? How
do we count fairies? - custom costume
A sword and pointy
ears and boxing gloves and a
princess-y cone hat. - at the moment before death
Life is a series
of dumb video clips that
flash before your eyes. - make america weird again
We drink Mountain Dew
screwdrivers for breakfast and
eat breakfast at night. - hard candy halloween
A ghost tried to warn
kids about the dangers of
plaque and gum disease. - the color of hate
Terrorists come in
all shades: white, white, white, white, white,
white, white, white and white. - that’s the way love goes
The confusion that
comes with budding amour grows
my anxiety. - the unfairer sex
Men, with their grabby
hands and lewd remarks and cruel
attitude. Xwhy? - the fortune teller’s creed
Uncertainty breeds
anxiety. Better to
know bad news up front. - sunset in the afternoon
Night begins as soon
as lunch is done, and the drive
home slinks through pitch black. - the biggest dragonfly ever
A lone drone swoops through
the park weaving through tall trees
and dodging frisbees. - when johnny comes limping home
A nation sends its
young to war, then leaves them to
pick up their own pieces. - when one become two
We lie awake, side
by side, wondering what the
other wants in time. - modest riches
Bills paid, flat fixed, new
toaster, new underwear, cash
for fast food takeout. - feed the trees
The paperwork to
reduce paperwork is held
up by no paper. - for god and country
They risked it all for
apple pie and the Amer-
ican way of life. - ode to a beard
The scraggly friend who
cleans up after meals, gives a
tickler to faces. - after goodbye
The beating goes on,
a solitary thump. The
heart wants what it wants. - tis better
Love isn’t lost. It
hides in the crevasses of
the poor broken heart. - the march of time
Six more weeks till a
new year. Six more hours till a
new day. Keep trying. - hushed skeletons
Cruelty is silence
smothering the victims of
sexual violence. - let us now praise infamous men
They built careers on
stellar reputations and
silent survivors. - hole foods
I should eat more fresh
vegetables, he thought as he
munched on a doughnut. - t-shirt curls
Sometimes, the workout
is getting into the right
outfit to sweat in. - vacancy
The empty spaces
in my heart used to hold some
very dear partners. - the perfect thanksgiving meal
Buttered toast, popcorn,
pretzel sticks, jelly beans and
an ice cream sundae. - agenda of entitlement
Are we doing all
we can to shame sexual
assault survivors? - all you can gorge
Have we eaten all
we can? Eat more. Have we thanked
everyone? Thank more. - black every day
The middle class spent
their last dollars on super
bargains made abroad. - shun local
The old shopkeeper
braced for the impending wave
of no customers. - garden raiders
Vermin creep through the
rows of tender seedlings in
search of freebie food. - wisdom of the crowd
Sometimes the angry
mob with pitchforks and torches
is exactly right. - sensible names for pets
Constance, George, Wilma,
Matthew, Irwin, Fran, Justine,
Luther, Kate, Danny. - let’s get rid of
Nazis, gaslighters,
colluders, sex predators,
tax dodgers, bullies. - an open secret
Everyone in the
office knew he was a cad
but kept it private. - a big eastern syndicate
Christmas isn’t a
season or a warm feeling.
It’s raw consumption. - trauma on the reg
Every time she peeked
online, she re-lived horrors
from past and present. - thirdhand
They say you never
get a second chance to make
a first impression. - demotivational speaker
Inspirational
quotes couldn’t match the murmur
of cruel depression. - and on earth peace and goodwill towards some
That uncle on the
Facebook won’t stop jabbering
about foreigners. - party before country
We drank from the cup
of wretched excess before
dozing in the woods. - you can’t spell iambic pentameter without i am me
Can we find ourselves
in a poem? Can we learn
from these brief verses? - shade to come
The hot new color
for next year is called Putrid
Melancholy Brown. - work harder not smarter
Employees will keep
their efforts at a work-life
balance to themselves. - never too early to campaign for votes
In 3 days, this dumb
election will be over
and on to the next. - blizzard alley
Our flaky climate:
It snows more often in the
South than days gone by. - never underestimate the power of
Voters, but also
money, corruption, lying
and stupidity. - in a pear coulis
On the first day of
Hanukkah, my rabbi gave
to me … a latke.
• • •
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