one-line linked haiku four    april 4-may 5 1999

stretch toward morning

jade branches curves stretch toward morning sunlight
winter not an illness but a spring day quite a cure
just beyond the maple's shade TB patient layered in blankets
i love the mulch just as much as what comes up in it
against dull remains of the storm a single daffodil opens
repetitive war talk the screaming child screams

heart of ancient she-defined culture pleas to a made-up male
crude monument rises from the ruins of decay
the wind has turned cold i'd rather rake than clean a floor
those long fingers sweep the hair from wide eyes
too soon wrist pain about to call the mouse 'you dirty rat'
full weight of the stone before it's thrown
this morning the dangling mailbox door no longer dangling
still no sound from the wind chimes
train whistle in the next county just to stay home forever
young waif curled into himself rocking, rocking
something sniffed the rescue squad leaves the coroner arrives
brush fires blaze thick smoke choking life

charcoal sketch the imprint in reverse a better angle
toughest roots to dig out saved for their beauty
red tulips bending over the weight of captured rain
seeds only for the songbirds is that crow confused
field of sunflowers all turning toward last rays of sun
littered with snow and swat teams a campus of teens
media transmits recipe for tragedy horror updated hourly
fake wrestling real testosterone big bucks and drugs
twisted roots tangle us on the trail of wild mushrooms
called alternative medicine oldest ways of healing
hot mustard plaster burns slowly fade with aloe juices
a cool damp day a cold damp night

if ufo's don't exist can ufo haiku be written and published
perceived through raindrops even metal post wavers
garden plants a lilac bush a box of donuts for mother's day
cherry blossoms and bottle caps along the canal bank
unwanting me to be human social security nabs my tiny interest
fire ants marking their territory with each bite