two-toned daffodils —

beaten down by the rain and

plotting their return

nearing day's end

the sun gives the clouds the slip —

blossoms all aglow

bees trading tips

about today’s new blossoms —

their hopeful hum

waving sadly

at all the dogs I can’t pet —

rainy late March walk

a cardinal couple

never more than six feet apart

planning this year’s nest

marking time anew —

my mother finishes

every book I’ve loaned her

bread and milk —

everything comes back

to bread and milk

spiky sweet gum balls

now mostly dead and fallen —

so much to sweep away

every bird surprised

to see so many of us

out and about

brown leftover leaves

the backdrop of every hill —

red bud doubletake

late afternoon rain —

we keep looking for rainbows,

finding floods instead

even our shadows

shy away from each other —

social distancing

HT Terry Tempest Williams: 
https://twitter.com/TempestWilliams/status/1240123543016353794

fingers grown cold

from turning over rocks —

crayfish hunting

driving east

as the rain overtakes us —

coronavirus

Wanna play?

Friends, today is my #haikuversary! 

(I have been posting at least one haiku I can stand to share here every day for EIGHT YEARS. Or maybe SEVEN? I can't count. But a really long time, in any case.)

In celebration, I hereby invite you to join me in celebrating the art of haiku.

Here are some ways that you might decide to join in the fun. (Put whatever you decide to share either here in the comments or over on Twitter, where I am @butwait. I'll be traveling some today, but will definitely check in before day's end.)

• Poke around in the archives, find a favorite, and share it! Bonus points if you tell me why you like it. (But sometimes it's hard to say why, so no pressure.)
• Find a photo that you think pairs well with one of my haiku, and either tell me about it or create a haiga (image + haiku, e.g. this one)!
• Pick a date that is meaningful to you - just the date, not the year - and let me share a haiku I wrote on that date. Bonus points - again, no pressure! - if you tell me why the date is significant to you.
• Send me a word that you'd like to see me try to incorporate into a haiku (no promises!)
• Tell me about a moment that seemed "haiku-worthy" to you, but that you haven't quite managed to capture in the way you were hoping to
• Share a haiku of your own! (And don't focus too much on the whole 5-7-5 thing.)
• Tell me about your haiku reading practice! Do you come here and read mine, or do you only read them on Twitter? Who else writes haiku that you enjoy?
• Got any other ideas? Last year at least one friend wrote a haiku in response to one of mine, which was lovely and thrilling.

Thank you for considering dedicating some of your "stay at home" time and energy to helping me celebrate this small thing amidst everything big and scary that's going on right now.

turn out the porch light —

let’s stay in again tonight 

and remember

at five o’clock

we come to our driveways’ ends

to smile and wave

(HT to GB)

sunshine returning

while the mud remains —

everyone tracks it in

what is it

that she’s gotten away with?

a cat’s furtive glance

standing on the shore

I grab my father’s hand

and root for big waves

we in our small boat

nosing along the rocky coast

searching for a harbor

who will understand

about the moon I saw

first thing this morning?

watching the wind

in the whitecaps on the lake —

perfectly still heron

the birds take turns

expanding their song list —

early spring

winter moon —

my cupped hands waiting

for the water to warm

the rain remains rain

even as the night grows cold —

we stay snow hopeful

paired geese 

with their dreams of nesting —

we change a light bulb

half moon

in a clear night sky —

your upturned face

rumbling thunderstorm —

parents arguing over

whose snore is louder

quiet invitations —

a day full up with sunshine,

your surprised smile

sap starting to move —

I look at you to catch you

as you look back