2019
beaten by a neck
the filly’s first ribbons
of whip weals
Modern Haiku, vol 50.1
missed anniversary
my wife and I exchange
vowels
Failed Haiku, issue 37
dust motes
in a shaft of sunlight
we’re losing her
Presence, issue 63
breech birth
the old cowhand
unbuckles his belt
Presence, issue 63
ancestry tour
our Nogood Boyo
sleeps through Wales
Presence, issue 63
20 below . . .
talking fish-pepper-soup
with the cab driver
Acorn, issue 42
autumn rain
I heap more dirt
on the shoebox
Modern Haiku, vol. 50.2
bruised wrists
no one catches
the bouquet
Presence, issue 64
border crossing
a searchlight tracks
another tumbleweed
Presence, issue 64
long gone
above grandma’s mantlepiece
flying geese
Presence, issue 64
camping safari
waiting for the rain
to make love
A Moment’s Longing, HSA Members’ Anthology
(ed. Tanya McDonald)
final days
we begin to talk
in trochees
Prune Juice, issue 28
biology class
a frog jumps
out of it
Prune Juice, issue 28
engagement dinner
her mom double-knots
the turkey’s legs
Prune Juice, issue 28
heatwave
the oily ripple
of a millipede
The Heron’s Nest, vol.XXI.3
google maps . . .
Siri seems confused
by shit creek
Failed Haiku, issue 43
hospice flowers no matter what there is still life
Failed Haiku, issue 43
hoar frost
the bed of pine needles
still warm
Modern Haiku, vol.50.3
Michigan spring
a cloud brightens
then doesn’t
Modern Haiku, vol.50.3
ebb tide
she asks when my libido
will return
Acorn, issue 43
caddis hatch
a moose nudges her calf
into the mist
Seashores, issue 3
bitter cold
I crack open the window
for a fruit fly
Seashores, issue 3
son’s new house
her father’s initials
in the concrete
The Heron’s Nest, vol.XXI.4
first bike
beneath the paint
Dad’s bike
Presence, issue 65
packed pews
through the fire-and-brimstone
auntie’s thighs
Presence, issue 65
rechecking
my inheritance...
180 over 90
Prune Juice, issue 29
also, in wind flowers: The Red Moon Anthology of English-Language Haiku 2019
stomach cramps
a torn cat claw
in my blankie
Prune Juice, issue 29
old team photo
the random bounce
of a rugby ball
Rugby Haiku Contest, 2nd place
Published: Seashores, no.3
2020
tracking a deer
in fresh snow . . .
same bladder size
Modern Haiku, vol.51.1
lights out
the slap of elastic
around a diary
Frogpond, vol. 43.1
rented thunderbird
the wanton flaps
of a beagle’s ears
The Heron’s Nest, vol. XX1
condo elevator
a mom asks her kid
if I’m the one
Failed Haiku, issue 49
against all odds . . .
an unused condom
in the haystack
Failed Haiku, issue 49
morning snow
the footsteps from a grave
size 4
Presence, issue 66
watching her strip
a lamb-rack rib—
wolf moon
Presence, issue 66
stormforce wind . . .
creeping across the deck
ripples in the hail
Presence, issue 66
first love
the scags of corn
in my aunt’s teeth
Prune Juice, issue 30
folding napkins
with a maiden aunt
whispered names
Prune Juice, issue 30
no touching in the forest crown shyness
Kingfisher, issue 1
the muffled crunch
of heather under snow—
northern lights
Kingfisher, issue 1
scent of moss
stroking the soft belly
of a trout
Kingfisher, issue 1
uncoiling
a fiddlehead fern
she asks if I’m married
Acorn, issue 44
serving dessert
the perfect curve
of her mother’s scoop
Bundled Wildflowers, 2020 HSA Members’ Anthology (ed. Bryan Rickert)
3rd birthday
she says the name Granddad
is taken
Failed Haiku, issue 53
granite scree
the ram’s neck sinews
last to rot
Presence, issue 67
learning to whistle
the scout master’s fingers
in my mouth
Presence, issue 67
spring melt
the cat missing sign
missing
Presence, issue 67
white flashes at dawn
where the fireflies were—
dark-eyed juncos
The Haiku Hecameron (Ed, Scott Mason)
two cardinals
deep in the foliage . . .
CNN on mute
Hedgerow, issue 131
late thaw
our widowed neighbour
lowers her mask
Hedgerow, issue 131
kicking the tires
to stay warm—
hearse driver
Modern Haiku, vol. 51.3
yesterday today was tomorrow lockdown
Failed Haiku, issue 56
high blood pressure
where is it
when you need it
Failed Haiku, issue 56
three thousand miles, and
this ruby-throated hummingbird
finds me
Frogpond, vol. 43.3
sixth week untouched dandelions flowering
Kingfisher, issue 2
after the wedding
the plain bob minor
of two robins
Kingfisher, issue 2
still no news . . .
waiting at the window
for a second magpie
Kingfisher, issue 2
knitting with my aunt
she says let’s call it
a buttonhole
Acorn, issue 45
who let go of whom . . .
I watch another droplet
drip from the leaf
Presence, issue 68
old whaling station
at low tide
the scent of bones
Presence, issue 68
divorce court garden
willow branches stripped bare
by the flood
Presence, issue 68
open grave
my best friend’s mistress
throws the first dirt
Prune Juice, issue 32
lying
about the blood pressure . . .
silk sheets
Prune Juice, issue 32
repossessed . . .
under the peeling paint
a hand-drawn cross
Prune Juice, issue 32
new puppy
at the old pond
sound of water
Prune Juice, issue 32
squirrel on the feeder
grandpa
off his rocker
The Heron’s Nest, vol. XXII.4
In 2019, I was one of seventeen elected into the New Resonance community of haiku poets. A selection of our work was included in the anthology New Resonance 11—you can see mine here.
Here is a selection of more recent haiku:
lew watts