Haiku from the Headlines #26: Anniversary Edition

It's been one (whole) year since I started the Haiku from the Headlines series. When I started doing the series, it was an effort to practice my craft from as many avenues as possible. I felt like I had been drifting away from poetry and needed to rekindle the relationship and put in the work - reading and writing - that would make me the poet I want to be. 

I had kept poetry off of the blog for a long time because I wanted to focus on having my poems published in journals - many of which won't publish work if it's been seen on your blog already. But I figured out that I could do still have work on the blog by sharing some things I didn't intend to publish - writing exercises. In celebration of this haikunniversay, here's a re-cap of the most popular haiku from the series.

What's evident to me is that headlines and news in general are grim. And as I continue to read headlines, it doesn't seem like the grim is lessening. At least there are poems to help us/me make sense of it all. See recap below.  

Michigan prosecutors consider charges in Renisha McBride case

Consider her: threat

Black. Bruised blue, pleading. Later, 

Skull with bullet lodged. 

Forest Whitaker on The Butler: 'We've gone from living in chains to leader of the free world.' 

Bonsai tree et al 

Optimism: the new struggle 

Zen is the new black 

Program give young illegal immigrants a ticket to self-respect 

roses multiplying 

Hola Dona Julia 

sewing to make ends 

Another baby dies 

smothered with sorry 

tiny shadow left behind 

circumstance can kill 

Haiku from the Headlines #25

It's been a long time. And this is what's been happening. For the year 2014, so far the number of police killings has passed 30. We've got three more months to go.

Cops kill gunman 

If I owned a gun, 

there would be bullets. No use. 

Constant attacking. 

Article: Cops kill gunman

Haiku from the Headlines #24

Today is the last day of poetry month and the 30-Day Challenge. Unfortunately, I didn't make it all the way through to 30 poems, but it was still good to get these tiny pieces out of my system. I am compelled to write about the more than 200 girls kidnapped and missing in Nigeria, but that story is so painful to read and watch. I will come back to it. At the the very least, know that it is happening, has happened, whether you sign a petition or not; knowing that is happening, that it has happened is the first step to preventing it from happening again. 

I met an author I admired at Bocas Lit Fest this past weekend - Zimbabwean NoViolet Bulawayo. Her debut novel, We Need New Names tells the story of a Zimbabwean girl coming of age in America. Some critics have posited that Bulawayo, and other African authors, have created/are creating a new aesthetic of "African suffering" or are selling "poverty porn." She dismissed those critics as lazy. The 200+ girls kidnapped at gunpoint in Nigeria, their families and friends are suffering. The parents whose children were not abducted, but who are now living in fear of that reality are suffering as well and they all live in Africa. What if Africa had a different, new name? What if this place wasn't called Nigeria? Poem below. 

One on One 

we shared the same space 

podium shattered by time 

do we need new names? 

Haiku from the Headlines #23

I was privileged enough to be included in a reading of emerging writers at this year's Bocas Lit Fest in T&T. It was a great reading and most of the writers and poets with whom I shared the stage were people I have worked, laughed or limed with before. I have to admit that I was nervous about many things going into this event - I had nerves about the actual reading of the poems and I had nerves about the content, about what people would think. It was fine. And I had company in content about sometimes uncomfortable subjects. Today's headline is: "Who's Next?" Poem below. 

Who's Next? 

eight steps to sunrise 

we emerge from the creases

of unpublished books   

Haiku from the Headlines #22

Happy Earth Day!

Now, I'll be honest: I didn't remember that today was Earth Day and this environmental observation really didn't make any "big" headline news. Yet, a lil Earth Day poem never hurt nobody, right? And this one also comes with a song! "Mother Earth" by Brother Resistance. Poem below!

Earth Day 

sunlit resting place 

awareness more than speaking 

lengthy road to reel 

Haiku from the Headlines #21

Happy Easter! 

I went to church this morning, but not for the reasons you think. I was asked by a friend to be a Godparent and I graciously obliged. Although, because she is Catholic and I am not, I cannot really be a Godparent in the true Catholic sense of the word. Nonetheless, I showed up, dressed up, participated in service and even go a picture of White Jesus to take home! (Please check the Facebook page for evidence of this) Anyway, today's haiku comes from the experience. Poem below. 

Easter sermon 

Jesus is the truth! 

Law, sacrifice, savior. 

Minds washed up on shore. 

Haiku from the Headlines #20

Last Sunday, the headline story in T&T was a murder-suicide. A father killed his two children, aged one and three, then committed suicide. Today, one of the headlines in the Trinidad Express was "Another Baby Dies." So many questions came to my mind before I even read the article, the first one being, "Why are we killing our children?" After reading the story, I wanted to know, is the "male relative" referred to, the child's father? Was he abusive? It seems like a family alludes to that. Where are the dead baby's brothers and sisters right now? How could this have been prevented? The questions are almost too many to ask. Although I don't want to, I'm thinking of following these stories of murdered children. There is a larger story here that is not being told. Poem and article below.

Another baby dies 

smothered with sorry 

tiny shadow left behind 

circumstance can kill 

Article: 3-month-old baby girl found dead 

Haiku from the Headlines #19

Professor Mervyn Morris has recently been named Jamaica's poet laureate. He is the third laureate in the country's history and the first in 61 years. This was definitely "good" news and I was introduced to a poet whom I only knew in name. Reading his poem, "Little Boy Crying" made me think a lot about my own father who died a little more than eight years ago. In the poem, a father refuses to waiver to his three-year-old son's wants - although he would like to - in an attempt to instill discipline. The last line spoke to me especially and instead of using an article headline for today's poem. I wrote a short response piece with last line of "Little Boy Crying" as my title. This is going to be the opening of a much longer piece to a series I'm working on. Poem, article, and link to Morris' work below. :) 

You must not make a play thing of the rain 

The lesson I learned 

Death to a tolerable degree 

Water filled space lost 

Article: Mervyn Morris first poet laureate in 61 years 

"Little Boy Crying" by Mervyn Morris 

Haiku from the Headlines #18

This article speaks about an American psychic working in South Africa. The journalist covering the event was skeptical about the possibility of living beings speaking with the dead. Later, she found comfort in some research about the ancient practices of indigenous peoples throughout the world. Well... Poem and article below. 

Getting closure from the other side

His face did not beg, 

differ or bend into blue. 

Ancient. Shivers. Show.  

Article: Getting closure from the other side 

Haiku from the Headlines #17

This news about the treatment of sub-Saharan Africans in Morocco, and news of religious sectarian violence in countries like the Congo and Nigeria are saddening. How many times are we going to go through this? When are we going to learn? However, the campaign to stop the violence and discrimination in Morocco does provide some hope. Poem and article below. 

My name is not 'Negro' 

This is Africa 

Modern, complex, torn apart 

By unknown history 

Article: My name is not Negro in Al Jazeera English

Haiku from the Headlines #16

This headline made me laugh. I immediately pictured the person who was asking this question. Any guesses as to whom I imagined? Why do mangoes fall from trees? Poem and article below.

Why are my mangos falling from the tree? 

cascading petals 

they are no longer flowers 

turned fruit of knowledge 

Article: Why are my mangos falling from the tree? 

Haiku from the Headlines #15

There's so much I still need to learn here. But the most I can say is Rest in Peace Arthur. Poem and article below.

He cast a giant shadow 

Don't pretend to know 

The struggles he's seen, the doubt

Nights of drum and bass 

Article: He cast a giant shadow

Haiku from the Headlines #14

So I didn't read this article. I tried to work with the images the words brought up for me. I saw that someone posted it on their newsfeed on Facebook, and from the quoted material, it seems like this should be an interesting read about the way gender politics are manifesting in the current People's National Movement party leader election in T&T. Poem and article below. :)

Confessions of a soft man 

love letters soggy 

with tear drops fighting for space 

paper soaked man thin 

Article: Confessions of a soft man

Haiku from the Headlines #13

I didn't post yesterday, but not because I didn't write a poem! Well, here is #13 in the Haiku from the Headlines series. #14 to follow shortly. Poem and article below.

Pond street "giants" must not die in vain 

extraordinary 

mourners, widows, praise singers

who come in the Name 

Article: Pond Street "giants" must not die in vain

Haiku from the Headlines #12

This is a piece in today's New York Times about "universal prekindergarten" being implemented in New York. Policy makers are trying to instill in parents the need for education from a very, very early age, before birth even. Of course lack of "prekindergarten" had an  impact on poor parents just as the onset of "prekindergarten" will. I thought the last paragraph of the article made an interesting point: one's ability to read, write, and complete basic math operations is really makes a difference between options and no options, and also between life and death. Poem and article below. 

Books, and Compassion, From Birth

   -found poem 

Say, "He understands."

Things, not immediately 

between prospects/death.  

Article: Books, and Compassion, From Birth

Haiku from the Headlines #11

Today's haiku comes from the Washington Post Photos of the Day. Here is the caption:

April 6, 2014Abuzar Ahmad, the youngest son of slain Afghan Agence France-Presse reporter Sardar Ahmad, makes a ”victory” sign as he poses for a photograph during a visit by his family at a local hospital in Kabul. The child, whose family was gunned down in a luxury Kabul hotel, may soon leave the hospital after recovering rapidly from bullet wounds to his skull, chest and thigh, doctors said. Abuzar, almost 3, suffered fragment wounds in the shooting on March 20 that killed his father, senior AFP reporter Sardar Ahmad; his mother, Homaira; sister Nilofar, 6; and brother Omar, 5. Abuzar’s relatives hope that he will start a new life with many of his cousins who live in Toronto. “He could be discharged within a week or 10 days if things continue to go well,” Luca Radaelli, medical coordinator at the Italian-run Emergency Hospital in Kabul, told AFP. Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images

Poem below. View photo HERE

Slain Afghan reporter's son on road to recovery 

peace-filled sippy cup 

rests knowing children triumph 

conviction, bullets. 

Haiku from the Headlines #9

I decided to do something different today. Instead of reading an article, I simply scanned the Washington Post for interesting headlines. When I clicked on this link in the Local section, it said, "Program gives young illegal immigrants a ticket to self-respect." However, the headline changes when you get to the actual story. Poem and article below. 

Program give young illegal immigrants a ticket to self-respect 

roses multiplying 

Hola Doña Julia 

sewing to make ends 

Article: Young illegal immigrants get two-year ticket to earn, learn and enjoy self-respect

Haiku from the Headlines #8

This piece comes from one of the headlines in today's Trinidad Guardian. Trade unions are planning (yet another) massive protest march. I feel this is a case of "damned if you, damned if you don't." Poem and article below.

All is not well in T&T 

Leaders do not solve 

failures of democracy. 

Change lies within love. 

Article: Roget: All is not well in T&T 

Haiku from the Headlines # 7

Life caught up with me and now I'm playing catch up with the blog! Here is Haiku from the Headlines #7 from the #poetrymonth edition. Recently in T&T there's been a lot of talk about former government minister Chandresh Sharma and his alleged physical assault against his ex-girlfriend. There seems to be a lot of emphasis on the fact that he committed adultery. No article to link cause there's just too many! Google "Sacha Singh Trinidad" LOL. 

Haiku on the Nation's focus on adulterous politicians 

If the wife had said, 

"I told her sleep with my husband." 

Would we still be mad? 

Smoke screen! Smoke signal! 

Sound the alarm! What about 

that head he busted? 

Haiku from the Headlines #6

The UK Guardian recently interviewed Sudanese supermodel Alek Wek. Her story is truly inspiring. Poem and article below.

Alek Wek: 'You don't have to go with the crowd." 

indigo midriff 

she made the clothes Dinka, smile 

defied gravity