Some Haikus I’ve Written Recently

Or at least, some poems that follow the 5–7–5 structure that help me collect my thoughts for the day

David Drake
3 min readJun 26, 2021
Okay, maybe it’s not technically a Haiku, but it follows the structure, which is the part I most enjoy.

Haiku 俳句

For a set of words to be a Haiku, there’s supposed to be an additional element to them called a “kireji (切れ字)” or “cutting word.” I’m still working on how to best incorporate that into the practice of writing these short little poems. In the meantime, what I’ve enjoyed about the process is defining words into the structure.

A haiku is meant to have the following structure:

  • 5 syllables
  • 7 syllables
  • 5 syllables

By doing this in the morning, it allows me to collect my thoughts that first enter my brain as the daylight starts to inform my day. It gives some structure and process to the flood of ideas, inspirations, and desires that I want to accomplish for the day.

So, while I’m aware that what follows aren’t technically “haikus” in the strictest sense without the kireji, I don’t have another good word to define what they are.

What I can say is: they are part of my practice of making writing a habit, and I enjoy doing them very much. I alluded to this practice of writing haikus in my last publication and, since I wrote one yesterday (June 25th, 2021) as a part of my daily writing practice I thought I’d publish it.

Alongside it, I thought I would share a few other ones I’ve written recently, as a part of my “daily” writing habit practice. As I mentioned in my other post, a lot of times I write these for my partner and just share them privately. But there’s a few that I’ve started sharing publicly now, too.

I also find it fun to select a photo that matches the words. It’s a few minutes out of my morning that allows me to center and slow my thoughts and turn in them into words, explore some fun imagery, and let it inform and help define my day and what I hope to get accomplished. Other folks on various platforms have enjoyed them, so I hope that you’ll enjoy some of them too.

𝐈𝐧𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 内向き

A window outside
Only looks one way: beyond.
Seek reflection, too.

— 25th of June, 2021

𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 成功

Successful pursuits.
Finding happiness in work.
Accepting process.

— 24th of June, 2021

𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞 息をします

Breathe in my future.
Exhale my entire past self.
Manifest today.

— 21st of June, 2021

𝐎𝐧𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 オンワード

We must go forward.
Looking back leads us nowhere.
Upon our past: build.

— 17th of June, 2021

--

--

David Drake

Accomplished Father, Leader, Engineer, Writer, and Wannabe Chef. @randomdrake