mydailyhaiku

mydailyhaiku.com

home the haiku winter 2005 next

by Chris Smith

7 December 2004 - 30 March 2005

12-7-04 in the freezing wind

puppy does her business quick

hurries back inside

12-8-04 these brown brick houses

with ivy look best at night

wreath in the spotlight

12-9-04 the white light reindeer

turns its lowered head with us

watching as we pass

12-10-04 randomly blinking

multi-colored manger scene

a savior is born

12-11-04 dropped off by a friend

late at night, a young boy walks

the last block alone

12-12-04 defeated quarry

bound to the roof of a car

bleeds sap from its wound

12-13-04 auto dealership

a patch of light in the night

where we used to play

12-14-04 wind ravaged wind chimes

clang their bitter torture song

through the frigid night

12-15-04 wispy waves of snow

wash across the salty street

break against the curb

12-16-04 from in this building

I hear the sound of water

like an alpine stream

12-17-04 low lake effect clouds

wreak havoc on the southtowns

here a starry night

12-18-04 chinchilla perhaps?

in crawled from the sewer and

has a rat-like tail

12-19-04 a swing sways gently

in the lonely winter night

its seat packed with snow

12-20-04 puppy's paw froze up

she carries on her sniffing

hopping on three legs

12-21-04 my love kisses me

puppy nuzzles my hand for

petting of her own

12-22-04 on the frozen streets

cars move slow while steam rises

from the sewer grates

12-23-04 puppy eats the snow

like the frosting yard around

a gingerbread house

12-24-04 Christmas Eve blizzard

each street lamp on the way a

Star of Bethlehem

12-25-04 Liliputians tug

their ropes to tame the wind-whipped

inflatable Santa

12-26-04 on the window pane

frost crystals form in a pattern

a giant snowflake

12-27-04 look! a gang of sorts

wielding weapons . . . my mistake

kids playing hockey

12-28-04 a smell deep below

puppy buries her head in

the fresh power snow

12-29-04 puppy tilts her head

steps close so when I pet her

I pet her just right

12-30-04 COHABITATION:

learn to reset the toaster

each time you use it

12-31-04 icicle fingers

grasping onto the gutter

try to pull it down

1-1-05 the radiator

crackles while I sleep under

an open window

1-2-05 a quiet moment

exiting the hookah bar

consumed by traffic

1-3-05 brown winter pastures

soft bedroom colors so the

shaggy sheep can sleep

1-4-05 the snow falls softly

dances lightly in the wakes

of the passing cars

1-5-05 crystalline snowflakes

glitter under the street lamp

crunch under my boot

1-6-05 with the nest complete

the tired bird can now rest

another egg appears

1-7-05 sewer infested

with the string-tailed cotton mouse

let's exterminate

1-8-05 a young mother lets

her son push the shopping cart

watch where you're going!

1-9-05 as I sit at the

snow-covered picnic table

a frozen silence

1-10-05 metropolis lights

all along the expressway

empty parking lots

1-11-05 snow-frosted highway

the car ahead pirouettes

my knuckles whiten

1-12-05 a midwinter thaw

so refreshing I'm tempted

to air out the house

1-13-05 the sun rose early

this morning, a day of spring

in January

1-14-05 wet snow on trees

peels off the branches, falls splat

in the morning sun

1-15-05 excess road salt

sparkles in the evening sun

waiting for more snow

1-16-05 it lurks behind me

driving a tractor-trailer

death is tailgating

1-17-05 as I kiss my love

after crossing the carpet

sparks from nose to nose

1-18-05 the wounded guardrail

taunts me while the lane lines slide

under me sideways

1-19-05 the scrape of shovels

wakes me before the alarm

but this bed's so warm

1-20-05 we exit the woods

in the same parallel tracks

we made entering

1-21-05 through dirt and salt on

my icy fogged-up windshield

the harsh winter sun

1-22-05 mama is gone now

let's try teaching the baby

how to climb the stairs

1-23-05 encrusted in snow

a payloader parked mid-scoop

frozen in time

1-24-05 a crystalline web

of frost clings to my windshield

makes it look shattered

1-25-05 the January sun

fades into the gray sky

snow begins to fall

1-26-05 ICY PAVEMENT ZONE

every inch of the highway

all the way to work

1-27-05 it's warm inside but

the car key in my pocket

cold against my leg

1-28-05 the weak winter sun

through the pine forest reveals

a hilltop lodge

1-29-05 a branch reaches out

as we ski through the quiet woods

it steals my hat

1-30-05 out in the meadow

on the flattest stretch of trail

this is where I fall

1-31-05 sitting on the john

struggling with today's haiku

I force it out

2-1-05 in the morning sky

a gibbous moon — strong against

the pale winter sun

2-2-05 from this parking lot

the blue sky is full of stars

CAUTION: WATCH FOR ICE

2-3-05 as the melt trickles

down my driveway to the street

I hear birds chirping

2-4-05 this apple I left

in my office days ago

now the perfect snack

2-5-05 flashing yellow lights

and truck noises — brown water

splashes my toothbrush

2-6-05 after pouring down

bottles of drain opener

foul waters recede

2-7-05 holding daddy's hand

a boy walks on dirty snow

he walks on the moon

2-8-05 featherless chicken

with its pink muscles bulging

tries in vain to fly

2-9-05 our toothbrushes

entwined in the cup on the sink

like giraffes necking

2-10-05 for jury duty

I entered the city once

but never again

2-11-05 winter daylight fades

but never was as bright as

fluorescent street lamps

2-12-05 foraging possum

inspires a conversation

all about roadkill

2-13-05 an old-fashioned lamp

centered in the front window

must be grandma's house

2-14-05 PUPPYLVR plates

a pair of dogs look over

the driver's shoulder

2-15-05 from in my cave (work)

a shaft of light teases me

too small for escape

2-16-05 trees awaiting spring

shrug their branches underneath

the sticky wet snow

2-17-05 the door flies open

before I even touch it

whoa! excuse me

2-18-05 I start the engine

and the steering wheel shivers

in the cold morning

2-19-05 golden sunlight

glides gently across my pillow

good morning my love

2-20-05 this morning I put

some toothpaste on my hairbrush

I should have slept in

2-21-05 I'm still haikuless

staring at my love sleeping

she says come to bed

2-22-05 I smell the ocean

heaven knows what they do here

in this factory

2-23-05 a swarm of snowflakes

bursts from between the buildings

to sting my bare face

2-24-05 resting on a cloud

the full moon gathers its strength

before the bid climb

2-25-05 bed stand candle flame

reaches up for the tissue

that leans from its box

2-26-05 steering her scooter

the old woman grimaces

as if pedaling

2-27-05 kids bundled up warm

adults brave the winter streets

with wearing hats

2-28-05 girl climbs on the bus

her backpack pack with lunch and

books as big as her

3-1-05 as I spoon my love

my breathing slows until we

breathe in unison

3-2-05 summer buttercups

hidden under the snow

waiting for it to melt

3-3-05 puppy tries leaping

over the snowbank — falls short

swims to the sidewalk

3-4-05 a sudden silence

I wake for the second time

when her shower stops

3-5-05 a soap bubble drifts

into the dusty sunlight

bursts into nothing

3-6-05 paws prancing and claws

clacking on the hardwood floor

puppy has to go

3-7-05 the mouse in the house

got in the freezer somehow

and ate all our cheese

3-8-05 dogsitting is done

puppy desire barks at us

in our empty house

3-9-05 Ah-choo! Gesundheit.

Mouth open and nose twitching. . .

Gesundheit? Ah-choo!

3-10-05 mom reads to my niece

a story I recall from

thirty years ago

3-11-05 the WATCH FOR ICE sign

blows across the spring meadow

a warm gust of wind

3-12-05 ANNIVERSARY:

the snowflakes that fall this March

not near as lonely

3-13-05 nervous laughter in

the middle of the parlor

silence at the end

3-14-05 Niagara Falls:

a tree snaps under the weight

of the frozen mist

3-15-05 toothless one-eyed man

plants his cane, leans on his cane

to look down the street

3-16-05 we pause while skiing

in the bright evening sunshine

I show her the ring

3-17-05 it looks like spring but

we still need a good hard rain

wash this shit away

3-18-05 specters huddled close

under the smoking shelter

the cold morning mist

3-19-05 two birds flying north

circle over snowy fields

with no place to land

3-20-05 in church this morning

finger fidget with the palms

hands eager to weave

3-21-05 second day of spring

the most oppressive snow ever

dusting my car

3-22-05 serpentine guardrail

its broken back encircled

by orange pylons

3-23-05 my love

a warm campfire

in our bed

3-24-05 old woman at the end

of her shovel-wide path

this might be enough

3-25-05 my loves foot massage:

my feet feel like they've never

walked a single step

3-26-05 the table is set

for our party tomorrow

good night table

3-27-05 old woman at church:

her voice breaks free and flies high

a bird in the sky

3-28-05 the evening half-light

on the olive colored lawn

last month was darkness

3-29-05 in the triangle

between highway ramps, a marsh

a skittish heron

3-30-05 the April sun

on the matted lawn is trying

to resuscitate