Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

At some point, the ability to learn is a factor of character, not IQ.

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

Dear elected officials: Trump is temporary, dishonor is forever.

“woke” is the new caravan.

It’s a good piece. click on over. but then come back!!

I desperately hope that, yet again, i am wrong.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Jack Smith: “Why did you start campaigning in the middle of my investigation?!”

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

The “burn-it-down” people are good with that until they become part of the kindling.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

Since we are repeating ourselves, let me just say fuck that.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

“In the future, this lab will be a museum. do not touch it.”

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

Second rate reporter says what?

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

You are here: Home / Photo Blogging / On The Road / Haiku / On The Road – Munira – Morning Haiku Walk

On The Road – Munira – Morning Haiku Walk

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On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.

From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.

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Munira

It has long been my habit to go for a walk in the afternoon, but in March (in a fit of self-improvement), I began taking a second walk every day, this time early in the morning before breakfast. Since it was often still dark when I went out, I didn’t go on the trails. I just walked around the perimeter of the apartment complex where I live because the parking lots are lit and I could see where I was going. It’s a big complex so the walk takes around fifteen or twenty minutes. The grounds are quite beautiful with many trees, flowers and assorted wildlife (rabbits, ducks, seagulls, various songbirds, deer and squirrels).

I had also resolved to write at least one haiku every day, and I soon discovered that the haiku frequently came to me during my walk. I took a photo of whatever had inspired me, and when I got back to my apartment, I texted the photo and the haiku to my sister and a friend. At first, I wasn’t sure how my offerings were being received until one day I was late sending my message. I got a text from my sister saying, “Haiku, photo?” It was encouraging to see that my efforts were appreciated, and I’ve tried not to be late since then.

All of the haiku and photos in this post are from my morning walk during the months of April and May. This walk has become one of the most treasured parts of my day, and it’s a pleasure to share it with you.

Reader Interactions

39Comments

  1. 1.

    JPL

    we bow to each other

    the aging tulip

    and I

    I love this and it captures my current mood.

  2. 2.

    Rusty

    I don’t recall us getting poetry with photos before. Thank you so much for sharing!!

  4. 4.

    stinger

    Easy to see why your sister jumped in when you were late! How can I get on your mailing list?

  7. 7.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    What a wonderful thing to do. Doing something every day like that is hard. The haiku made me stop and think. My favorite line is “the new leaf turns itself.”

  9. 9.

    The Fat Kate Middleton

    Lovely…these lifted my heart. Could you be persuaded to post these here on a regular (or semi-regular) basis?

  12. 12.

    Immanentize

    What a great idea and tradition you have started for yourself and your sister and friends. And your pictures are lovely and your eye is true.

    Who am I to ask
    If tradition matters when
    Poems are written.

  15. 15.

    WaterGirl

    Wonderful way to start the day.  I meant that about us, getting to see your haikus with these lovely photos, but it also applies to you.

    Hmm, with 30 days in a month, and 10 images in a post, is it greedy to ask if maybe we could get these from you 3 times a month?  :-)

  17. 17.

    martha

    So lovely, and yes, I too want to be on your mailing list! A wonderful discipline.

  18. 18.

    Kevin

    Very cool idea. We are traveling up to WA later this month. Flying home from Bellingham. Small world!

  20. 20.

    J R in WV

    Thanks for sharing your work, it is wonderful!

    Slightly off-topic, but many years ago I  brought a potted orchid home from Kroger’s for the Wife. Still in its original pot, on the windowsill over the kitchen sink, this plant of 4 broad leaves at a time put out a long thread of greenery a week or two ago, and now the first of what looks to be 4 or 5 blooms is open above the kitchen sink.

    This is the more remarkable since both Wife and I can kill a plant just be being around it!

    I water it with a little cup-sized antique glass insulator once or twice a week, no other care has been necessary so far.

    Also a floral topic, the ramps I have planted on the hillside just south of the house have climbed out of the earth, then fallen back into the ground. Now, though, the invisible underground ramps have  also put forth tall skinny stalks with blooms above each thick patch of nature’s finest onion species. Dozens of blooms like tiny starbursts of white in a sphere about as big as a quarter.

    Photos to follow, eventually.

  21. 21.

    MelissaM

    These are lovely, and OTR is too short sometimes. I, too, would love to see these more often.

  22. 22.

    arrieve

    This is so wonderful! Thank you for sharing.

    Haikus are such a fun way to play with language. I’ve been studying Spanish (a useful tool for teachers of English as a second language) and sometimes I write a haiku in Spanish for fun. Playing with the words makes me feel as though I own them somehow.

    But writing a good haiku (in English) requires being able to find just the right slice of a longer string of words so that when you read it you think, “Yes, that’s exactly right, but I never saw that before.”

    You are doing that.

  23. 23.

    munira

    Good morning everyone. Just tuning in from the west coast. Thank you all for your lovely comments. A little haiku pedantry – the plural of haiku is haiku – no ‘s’. As for getting on my mailing list – it’s really a text list – I guess you could email your cell phone numbers to Watergirl and she could send them to me. And as for doing posts more often, I can try. I’m pretty busy – still working part time, gardening, playing music, and just keeping my life together, but I’ll make an effort.

  24. 24.

    Madeleine

    Thank you. The photos are such individuals and the haiku capture the moment beautifully. When you are willing, please send more.

  25. 25.

    Jill

    I am the haiku and photo receiving sister—also a recipient, along with the rest of the family, of a calendar each Christmas with 12 haiku and photo pairings. A lovely way to start the day and end the year.

  29. 29.

    Munira

    @Immanentize: Ah yes, tradition. Some haiku poets writing in western languages still use the 5-7-5 format, but most don’t. It works for Japanese syllables, but not so well for western languages. It often leads to padding the lines and they come out longer than they need to be. I don’t know Japanese, but apparently, the whole idea of syllables is different. There are quite a few articles in haiku journals on this subject.

  30. 30.

    A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)

    These are wonderful. I add my vote to having semi-regular posting of them. My favorite is the Junco with the fallen cherry blossoms, but all of them were great. You are good! Please keep it up

    ETA: I always wondered about the syllable count thing in Japanese vs. English.  Thanks for the short discussion.

  33. 33.

    JustRuss

    As a fellow PNWer, “the light behind the clouds” really resonates this year, it’s been so dreary. Hope you post more of these some time, they are wonderful.

  34. 34.

    John S Green

    Every one of your eight photo-ku are beautifully woven. A treasure to have such a lovely hobby.

    A walk to enjoy nature and write haiku has a name. It is called a ginko. Munira is very kind to share her ginkos (plural?) with us.

  39. 39.

    Swampwoman

    I am the friend of the famous ginkgo girl Munira. Along with her sister Jill, I start my day with her photo and haiku texts and just now caught up with these especially lovely ones. I love to see her art appreciated by so many. She has amazing gifts and I am fortunate to have been her friend for more than fifty years.

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