Haiku: Farmers As Ants

When you start the morning chores and the sky looks this angry, you know you’re racing the clock. You think to yourself “just a few more minutes…”, but you know you’re not in control – nature is. After about 15 minutes, our luck ran out and the heavens opened up on us. We were both soaked. But that’s how it goes when you farm and there are animals to be attended to; sometimes, you get lucky and the rain holds off, and sometimes it doesn’t. And the chores still must be done.

Haiku: Seeking Sleep

As I sit, sipping my cup of herbal tea and hearing the downpour outside, I wonder why I’m awake at this hour. Perhaps it’s the “unseasonable” (do seasons still exist?) warmth that interrupted my sleep, or thoughts of the day’s upcoming activities…regardless, I’m chagrined to be awake when I should – and need to be – asleep. My tea now finished, I’ll try to resume my slumber, back with the cottony clouds.

Haiku: Morning Glory

What starts a morning off better than being greeted by a stunning sunrise? I get to enjoy these regularly (weather permitting) because they coincide with morning potty time for our pups. Seeing Nature’s breathtaking display and knowing that there are others out there who just take sunrise for granted, who may visually process the occurrence but not really think about what they’re seeing, makes me want to soak in its sheer magnificence, (silently) proclaiming, “I see you, in all your splendor!”

The wonder of the natural world is all around us…look for it.

Haiku: Into The Ether

I’d hazard a guess that most farmers don’t spend too much time looking up at the sky and daydreaming – for obvious reasons: you look up and step into a hole or slip and end up covered in mud. Nobody wants that, and injuries aren’t funny when you have buckets to lift, you need to crouch and stoop, and there isn’t a “backup” to do the work for you. When I saw this morning sky, though, I had to stop pulling my cart loaded with feed buckets and rubber bowls – just for a moment – and take it in.

The soft, puffy-looking “dunes” invited pondering what lay beyond them: the ether. There was blue sky up there, and it peeked out from the cloud cover. I couldn’t help but wonder if, when sleep came, I could float up there, passing through the spun-cotton threshold into what’s above. Maybe I’ll find out.

What feelings or imaginings does this sky(ku) evoke in you?

Haiku: High-Altitude Alliance

Clouds are endlessly fascinating – in the same sky, they can appear in myriad formations, forecasting weather and mesmerizing with swirling, fleeting images. Was that a dragon – or a bus? Regardless of what you see – whimsical or ordinary – look up (if it’s safe to, of course) – they may be shaping themselves into something extraordinary right at this very moment.