Tag Archives: haiku

April 2022 Literary Calendar

Events in the month of April for writers and readers

D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything and Read) Month

National Poetry Month

School Library Month

  • 1 – Reading is Funny Day
  • 2 – International Children’s Book Day
  • 2 – National Children’s Picture Book Day
  • 2 – Hans Christian Anderson’s birthday
  • 3-9 – National Library Week
  • 4 – National School Librarian Day
  • 4 – Maya Angelou’s birthday
  • 5 – National Library Worker’s Day
  • 6 – National Library Outreach Day (formerly National Bookmobile Day)
  • 7 – Take Action for Libraries Day
  • 9 – National Unicorn Day
  • 12 – Drop Everything and Read (D.E.A.R.) Day
  • 12 – Beverly Cleary’s birthday
  • 13 – Scrabble Day
  • 14 – Celebrate Teen Literature Day
  • 15 – Rubber Eraser Day
  • 15 – World Art Day
  • 16 – National Librarian Day
  • 17 – International Haiku Poetry Day
  • 18 – Newspaper Columnists Day
  • 23 – William Shakespeare’s birthday
  • 23 – World Book and Copyright Day
  • 23 – World Book Night
  • 24 – U.S. Congress approved the Library of Congress
  • 27 – National Tell A Story Day
  • 28 – Harper Lee’s birthday
  • 28 – Great Poetry Reading Day
  • 30 – Independent Bookstore Day

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Sweet Visions

Last week I posted a haiku writing from a close friend, Preston*, who I’ve known for more than 20 years.  Haiku (or hokku) is a Japanese verse form of poetry that follows a very strict composition of three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables and is often a prelude to a longer poem or a story.  The terse nature of haiku verbiage always challenges the writer to capture what is absolutely necessary for that particular moment.  Such brevity is more difficult than most imagine, but just a few carefully chosen words can evoke extraordinary visions in the minds of an audience.

Smiling was easy

When our eyes were bright and clear

We were so naïve.

 

– Preston

 

*Name changed.

Image: Faunaimage

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Stolen Moments

A friend of mine, Preston*, has recently taken to poetry writing, or more specifically to haiku writing.  Haiku (or hokku) is a Japanese verse form of poetry that follows a very strict composition of three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables.  Not popular in Western cultures until about the early 1900s, haiku are often accompanied by an image, or a pair of images, meant to depict the essence of a particular moment in time.  Their brevity is occasionally an introduction to a longer poem or a story, but its central purpose is to focus the reader’s attention on that one single moment that struck the poet’s mind as critical or somehow significant; a moment where everything came into focus; where the complexities of life were abruptly reduced to what is – and what is not – essential.

I trust and admire Preston greatly.  I wrote about him nearly 6 years ago in “One Good Friend.”  He’s truly one of those rare individuals who is focused and level-headed.  For us writers, focus is always a challenge, while level-headedness is sometimes elusive.

Time is a bandit

Reducing our hopes and dreams

To mere memories

 

– Preston

 

*Name changed.

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