Poems, Haiku Quintets

All haiku below are included in Haiku Quintets, a free ebook. Several were further edited for publication. See finished works at Five Palms Press.

127. About the Author ~ Haiku-style bio-page for upcoming ebook

126. Life ~ Will Perseverance Mars Rover prove the obvious?

125. VOTE! ~ Democracy is on the ballot

124. The Novel ~ A haiku whodunit

123. My Race Against Time ~ Will I finish this before fate intervenes?

122. The Wolf and the Sheep ~ Time to get a new sheep?

121. Simple Magic ~ Mediation is a life-skill

120. Execution by Hubris ~ Who will be the next victim?

119. Susan's Not Done Yet ~ There's a pattern here.

118. Acknowledgements ~ No one writes alone.

117. Dedication ~ My vectors to the future

116. Dylan Thomas and Me ~ Go gentle, or rage, rage?

115. Tet 1968 ~ Life-snippet: Cu Chi Vietnam, January 31, 1968

114. Adrien ~ Gender pioneer

113. Who Writes This Stuff? ~ Metaphysics at play?

112. Ode to Pablo Neruda's Ode ~ On socks and poetry

111. Shrinking City on a Molehill ~ America's mortal myth

110. Edda ~ Primal playmate, oldest friend

109. Remembering Lucy ~ Migrant of the mind

108. I am African ~ And you are too

107. Perspective ~ I Rest in Peace ... now

106. If I Were Black ~ Where can I breathe free?

105. Perfect Storm ~ Will the Rubicon be crossed this election?

104. Branches of the Human Tree ~ Name the trunk of this tree. Please.

103. I Have Survived, Somehow ~ So many close calls, but I'm still here

102. My Shrinking Island of Privilege ~ I dream Martin's dream

101. Nurse Tarin ~ You're my hero, too

100. Jim's Last Gift ~ He illuminated the road ahead

99. That's the Mystery ~ Failure of imagination

98. Relationship Black Holes ~ Energy goes in, none comes back out

97. Autobiography in Haiku ~ To be continued ...

96. Mutual Muses ~ My friend and I inspire each other

95. Organic Haiku ~ Read it in good health

94. 85 Syllables ~ Coloring between the lines

93. Water ~ The molecule that built us

92. An Old Flame ~ I want to learn about myself

91. Quarantine Coiffure ~ Paradigm shift in men's hairstyles

90. Richard, King of Reframe ~ Discoverer of the secret of life

89. Comet Covid ~ A seismic event

88. Unpoetic Poetry ~ Hmmmm ... wondering about these haiku quintets ...

87. Pondering Infinity ~ My tiny brain hurts

86. Surrender, Move On ~ What should have been cannot be

85. Epidemiology ~ Pass the course ... or die

84. This Defining Moment ~ Where does this triple-threat strait in history lead?

83. Right to Privilege? ~ Is empathy enough to balance the scale?

82. Introverts Unite! ~ What's so bad about self-quarantine?

81. Invisible Enemy ~ Beware the Trojan horse

80. BC ~ Before Coronavirus, when life was simple

79. The Black Swan Has Landed ~ Our surreal new normal

78. Self-Quarantine Report ~ Home confinement works for me

77. My Haiku Machine Is Broken ~ My muse is gone ... or is she?

76. Hidden Common Ground ~ Interests underlie

75. Supermoon ~ So near, yet so far ... so far, yet so near

74. We Are Accidental People ~ If a different sperm had reached the egg, what of human history?

73. Coronavirus ~ Have another beer

72. Poetic Science ~ Brushing word-art's colors on science's canvas

71. Cosmic Boundaries ~ What's on the other side?

70. Life Is a Movie ~ View from the peanut gallery

69. How to Make Love ~ This isn't what you think it is ... it's better

68. Cousin Taco ~ My moral dilemma

67. Mack's Vision ~ When visions diverge

66. Malecon Buskers ~ Strollers' seaside entertainment

65. Diez Pesos ~ How much can this small coin buy?

64. Homeleaving, Homecoming ~ Two homes on two bays

63. The Bridge Between ~ This span shall stand

62. Superbowl 2020 ~ Your haiku sports reporter is on the job.

61. Thin Silver Lining ~ End of young life may not be all bad.

60. Refuge in Art ~ I think I'll write a haiku.

59. The Edge of the Universe ~ There's nothing on the other side

58. Woke? ~ Racism's tricky wiles

57. Ode to Mrs. Mason ~ The Universal Mrs. Mason, teacher of children, worldwide, throughout time

56. Microeconomics of Love ~ Do lovers keep score?

55. First God ~ Grandaddy Deity

54. Brush Strokes in the Sky ~ Reflections on time

53. Haiku Quintets, the Craft ~ What is a "good" haiku?

52. Woodstock Souvenir ~ Life's a trip

51. Cosmic New Year ~ Who moved my galaxy?

50. Angel on Earth ~ The kindest person I've ever known

49. Annular Eclipse ~ Photography-as-art mic drop

48. Animal Friends ~ Not so different you and me, my pet

47. Just You and Me ~ The bottomless depth of a mother's grief

46. Gravity Makes Things Round ~ The curious shape of things that float in spacetime

45. Chicxulub Asteroid Impact ~ Our lucky day?

44. Lexophilia Haiku ~ Word-play can be pun.

43. Susan's Family Story ~ Three sister-moms, seven cousins, two losses

42. Why vote? ~ Can you resolve this logical paradox? Yes you can. S� se puede.

41. My Nigerian Atheist Friend ~ He must hide his truth

40. Democracy Grief ~ Despair leads to apathy, democracy dies

39. The Morning After ~ Newspaper headlines, November 4, 2020

38. Puerto Vallarta ~ Our Mexican home town

37. Absurdist Haiku ~ Sometimes meaning is found in unlikely places

36. Ambassador Bobbi ~ Appreciating a key team member of our condo association

35. On Antinatalism ~ Is life good? I mean, really, is life good?

34. My Mom ~ It takes a village to raise a child. But first, a mother.

33. My Dad ~ A Father's Day tribute

32. American Expat ~ An alien in my homeland?

31. Mediation ~ A life's calling ... and its afterlife

30. Useful Idiot? ~ One must wonder

29. Richard Died Today ~ Our friend is with us no more

28. Smorgasbord of the Mind ~ A gathering of word-nerds

27. Climate Crisis ~ Whether to postpone Earth's certain fate

26. Carpe Diem ~ Time flies, life is short, grab it

25. Natural Art ~ All art by human hands is not made

24. Sibling Love ~ Aging siblings celebrate our lifelong bond.

23. Math = Nature? ~ Why does mathematics describe the natural world?

22. Time Flies ~ Could we just slow this runaway train down a bit?

21. Kit ~ One classy lady

20. Susan at Play ~ Play on, and on, and on ...

19. For Whom the Art Trolls ~ What's art to you? And who says so?

18. Puppies in a Box ~ The secret sauce of easy marriage

17. Is This Art? ~ "Verbal impressionism by curious wordcraft" ... unless a real artist corrects me

16. Sketches in Haiku ~ Mutating and evolving an ancient art form, boldly going where acolytes fear to tread

15. Whence Reality? ~ Cosmology's sublime mystery: Why is there something rather than nothing?

14. Universe ~ Blow your mind on the cosmos, peer into the Hubble Ultra Deep Field

13. Daughter of Basho ~ Imagining the times of haiku's bygone creator, and an equal span into our own future

12. Haiku or Not Haiku? ~ Is Basho rolling over in his grave?

11. Moonset ~ As past becomes present, what choices do we really have?

10. My Aging Brain ~ Celebrating the benefits of aging, tempered by certain nuisances

9. On Dying ~ A lucky atheist's approach to death, dying, and choice

8. A Grandfather's Lament ~ Perhaps shared by other grandparents

7. Idealism vs. Realism ~ Inspired by The Education of an Idealist by Samantha Powers

6. Reunion ~ A moment that will be remembered for a lifetime

5. Song for Susan ~ A love story

4. Trump ~ This poet's fearful bias

3. Saturn ~ The pearl of our solar system

2. Vietnam ~ This veteran's reflections

1. Sunset ~ My first haiku quintet, the prelude to those that follow