Guerrilla Gardening, Part 1 of 3

IN TERMS OF "HAIKU 101" MATERIAL IT'S TURNING OUT THAT I DIDN'T REALLY FOLLOW AS STRICT A FORM AS I SET OUT IN THE SENSE THAT THESE POEMS WON'T HAVE THE ELEMENTS OF TRADITIONAL HAIKU. THOSE BEING A "KIREJI" OR CUTTING WORD THAT IS SUPPOSED TO COME AT THE END OF THE SECOND OF THREE LINES, OR IN MOST CASES AN OBVIOUS "KIGO" (SEASONAL CONTEXT CLUE). I DO LIKE THE IDEA OF THE CUTTING WORD AS GIVING MOMENTUM OR A TURN OR PIVOT TO EACH PIECE, BUT THE MUSICIAN IN ME WANTS TO PLAY AROUND WITH IT A LITTLE. LIKE IN THE FIRST POEM HERE, I'M THINKING THE BREAK DOESN'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO COME IN THE SECOND LINE. I MEAN I'M THINKING, FOR SOMETHING LONGER LIKE A SONNET FORM IT WOULD MAKE SENSE FOR THE TWIST TO OCCUR IN THE ENDING COUPLET, BUT FOR SHORTER FORMS LIKE THE HAIKU WHERE IT SEEMS LIKE ONLY ONE OR TWO THOUGHTS ARE EXPRESSED PER POEM, IF THE BREAK COMES WHERE YOU'RE NOT EXPECTING IT THEN IT JUST TAKES ON A SYNCOPATIC SORT OF QUALITY. AS IN SYNCOPATION. IS SYNCOPATIC A WORD OR DID I JUST MAKE THAT UP? BASICALLY IN MUSIC IT JUST MEANS THE STRONG BEAT NOT FALLING WHERE YOU WOULD EXPECT GIVEN THE METER. SCARILY, I SWEAR TO YOU THAT I AM 100% SOBER RIGHT NOW, WHICH I MUST BE BECAUSE IT'S THE MIDDLE OF THE DAY AND JUST PRIOR TO THIS I WAS DOING REAL JOB-RELATED WORK, WHICH I WOULD STILL BE DOING IF THE SITE I HAD TO REGISTER ON WERE RUNNING SMOOTHLY AND ACTUALLY REGISTERING ME. BUT SINCE IT ISN'T---LUCKY YOU!-- I GET TO VISIT HERE AND POST ALL OF MY SOMEWHAT DISTURBING THOUGHTS, ALONG WITH (HOPEFULLY) SOME POEMS.

I'M JUST REALIZING THAT I WILL HAVE TO REARRANGE EVERYTHING IF I'M PLANNING ON GOING WITH THE ORIGINAL IDEA OF BREAKING THINGS DOWN INTO EARLY/LATE SPRING SECTIONS, OR BY TYPE (FLOWER, VEGETABLE, FRUIT) OR BY LOCATION. ARGH. ANYWAY HERE ARE THE "FIRST EIGHT" WHICH WILL PROBABLY NOT STAY THE FIRST EIGHT, TO GIVE YOU A TASTE OF THINGS.

I. EDEN
FIG LEAVES FALL AWAY--
BRANCHING OUT FROM HOLLOW SKULLS,
ROOTS OF FRACTURED LIMBS.

II. AWAKENING
DAMP VINES ENCROACHING
FORCE THE HARDENED EARTH TO WAKE,
BREATHE HER FIRST WARM BREATH.

III. UNREQUITED
CLOUD THAT BRINGS THE RAIN
SOAK THE GRASS A VIBRANT GREEN--
YOUNG, CARELESS LOVER.

AH. ALREADY I'M HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THIS ONE. AN ISSUE WITH NARRATIVE AS WELL AS SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT THAT'S MAKING ME FEEL LIKE I SHOULD JUST SCRAP IT BECAUSE WORK ON SOMETHING THIS SMALL IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE SO DIFFICULT. AT ANY RATE WHAT I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DECIDE IS, IS THE SPEAKER TALKING ABOUT A RANDOM CLOUD IN WHICH CASE IT SHOULD READ "CLOUD SOAKS" AS IN THE CLOUD SOAKS? OR WHAT I WAS REALLY GOING FOR IS TO CONVEY THAT THE NARRATOR IS TALKING TO THE CLOUD IN WHICH CASE THE NARRATOR WOULD BE SAYING "CLOUD, SOAK" AS A COMMAND AS IN CLOUD, YOU SOAK. I DON'T WANT TO SAY CLOUD SOAKS PLURAL, BECAUSE THAT JUST ADDS ANOTHER S TO THE WHOLE THING WHICH I DON'T THINK SOUNDS RIGHT. THE WHOLE DILEMMA COULD BE AVOIDED IF I JUST SAY CLOUDS SOAK AND MAKE THE SUBJECT PLURAL, BUT I DON'T WANT TO DO THAT BECAUSE THE WHOLE POINT IS TO FOCUS ON THE ONE CLOUD, AND ITS LIBERAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE RAIN, AND ITS UNREQUITED LOVE FOR THE LANDSCAPE. THE EFFECT OF WHICH IS, OF COURSE, LOST IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MANY CLOUDS AND MANY PATCHES OF GRASS IN WHICH CASE WHO THE HELL CARES? BAH. AS AN ASIDE, SO GLAD ENGLISH IS MY FIRST LANGUAGE, BECAUSE IT MUST BE A REAL BITCH TO LEARN. NOTHING MAKES ANY DAMN SENSE!

IV. RUNAWAYS
ANCHORED TO THE EARTH
CHANNELS DEEPEN, SPREADING OUT,
PLOTTING THEIR ESCAPE.

V.
SMALLEST OF ORCHARDS
GIVE BIRTH TO FRAGRANT FLOWERS
FORESHADOWING FRUIT.

VI. UPPER EAST SIDE
EVERYWHERE GREEN--
WEIGHING ALL THE NEW BUDS DOWN,
ROUGH JEWELS AND SPIDERS.

VII. FRUIT STAND
BRICK PEACH, ROCK APPLES--
STREETLIT CEMENT FRESHLY POURED
CHOKES THE PEARS ROTTEN.

VIII. UP ON THE ROOF
EDIBLE GARDEN--
STRAWBERRIES RIPEN AND BURST
BETWEEN SKYSCRAPERS.