poetry

Haiku–Publications and Submissions

/ Juliana Lightle / Leave a comment

Because a substantial number of my readers seem to like haiku, I thought I would provide this information.  Two journals exist to which writers can submit haiku.  The first is “Haiku Journal” at http://www.haikujournal.org.  If you are not an expert, but want to try your hand at getting your attempts at haiku published, you probably will have a better chance here.  Their main criteria is the 7-5-7 syllable count and not the other aspects of haiku.  Some claim this really is not haiku and that the syllable count may work in Japanese but not in English.  See the comments by Michael Dylan Welch.  He claims it is the content, not the syllable count that matters.

The other is the journal, “Modern Haiku”, at http://www.modernhaiku.org.  Their criteria for publication are much more stringent than in “Haiku Journal”.  If you are interested in publishing in either, I suggest taking a look at work already published to get an idea regarding what they like.  Supposedly, “Haiku Journal” publishes the first fifty submissions as long as they meet their criteria which basically appears to be the correct syllable count.

Rosie and Mink

/ Juliana Lightle / Leave a comment

Six years ago my first exchange student, Kornpanod (Mink), from Thailand, joined my life.  Recently, she came to visit me for a month.

Six years ago she graced my life

joy filled beauty.

Now back with me briefly with love

exploring, riding Rosie, laughing.

11159482_10152911584375345_5155447099622538806_n

The Highest Bar in Africa

/ Juliana Lightle / 1 Comment

We sat around the fire

ALL of us

on The Roof of Africa,

the sign stating

“The Highest Bar in Africa”

at 3,260 meters.

We sat around the fire

All of us,

the British owner gone,

forbids natives to sit

with tourists.

We sat around the fire

ALL of us.

Shades of brown, black, cream,

peach, humanity.

I, for one, grateful for

the owner’s absence.

Whose country is it anyway?

IMG_0598

IMG_0595

Sunday Haiku–Not (Rosie)

/ Juliana Lightle / Leave a comment

I know I promised a haiku every Sunday.  However, while I was outside with my horse, Rosie, this kept running through my mind:

Leading Rosie by her mane

no halter, no lead rope, nothing

clicking my tongue, encouraging

Rosie’s such a good girl!

252154_10150250709710868_549391_n-2

Blank, white paper

/ Juliana Lightle / Leave a comment

Blank, white paper

stares at me,

sitting here eating a

left over Subway sandwich,

reading Sky Bridge by

Laura Pritchett,

avoiding my writing commitment.

This book surprises me,

makes me think of my students,

some poor, trailer housed,

gun toting, hard scrabble,

simultaneously smart and ignorant.

Their idea of rich includes

any house over 2000 square feet,

stylish, elegant clothes, land.

My brain swirls thoughts, images:

What can it all mean, this life?

Joy, a hurting beauty?

Looking out the windows,

listening to the West Texas wind,

I ask myself again:

What can it all mean?

Teaching

/ Juliana Lightle / 2 Comments

Three students mad at other students:

in stream-of-conscious essay one

tells me,

“I want to punch ___T____ and ___J_____ in the face.”

Two others allude, avoid the overt.

I must “fix” this for them.

Senioritis.

Change

/ Juliana Lightle / Leave a comment

“If you want the present to be different from the past, study the past.”  Spinoza

Christians went to the Holy Land

to claim it back.  Crusades.

Moslems fought Moslems

Sunni against Shia

Sufis outcast or revered

Hafiz, Rumi

No middle ground

No compromise

Centuries gone

New technology

the only change.

No one learned

listened to the past

to the humane

voices in the wind.