Four Days of Haiku: Tandem Poems

Writing in two Facebook poetry groups has been a heartening experience for me. It helps me to have feedback and commentary as I write. "Putting it out there" in a supportive group was a huge part of my making the decision to challenge myself to post a poem a day for National Poetry month.

Besides, it is fun. A lot of what goes on, especially in the Haiku-ca-choo! group, is silliness. Silliness spawns more silliness, and before long the haiku go spinning out of control. Sometimes one of us posts a piece that sets off a whole series of comments or responsive poems.

Recently, a chance meeting with a classmate (and fellow Haiku-ca-choo!-er) led to the following poems, a variation on tandem poems. The haiku are by me, the limerick is by Paul Monks, who I had earlier seen racing down the street on a bicycle. After our brief meeting, I called back, walking away, "I better see something in Haiku-ca-choo! about this!"


My haiku went up first.

**********

Street Scenes: Two Views

        I       
First warm day: Paul on
his bike, whizzing down the street,
grinning like a kid.

       II
Monks barreling down
the street, scattering those in
his path. "Hey, April!"

Same Street Scene
                   By Paul Monks

There is a lady we all like,
who takes what to me is a hike.
From work she does walk
and will stop to talk.
April could go faster by bike.
(warm weather haiku, non-fiction)

Reply to Monks

If I biked, so much
would be lost: snowdrops, bird songs,
chatting with old friends.