“A Few Haiku (33)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#193)

ursine winter’s claws
rend and tear and desecrate
yellow petals fall

…..

(#194)

this endless winter
memories of sunflowers
as the cities burn

…..

(#195)

children shall run free
in gilded sunflower fields
when this winter ends

…..

(#196)

glowing sunflowers
where there is light there is hope
we stand with Ukraine

…..

(#197)

sunflower seeds
plant the gardens of healing
watered with tears

…..

(#198)

cowards who start wars
shall die in ignominy
putin’s legacy

33 thoughts on ““A Few Haiku (33)””

    1. Thank you so much, trE. I felt like I needed to say something. It’s been so painful and difficult seeing what’s happening over there, and feeling so powerless to do anything about it. I truly appreciate your kind words. It means a lot to me. ๐Ÿ™‚

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  2. Hi Mike, very important pieces today. I noticed that you were”working” with sunflowers and war today. Reminds me a little of Kenneth Porter’s sunflower army. Great job and such a heartbreaking situation.

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    1. Thanks, Mark. Yeah, lots on my mind these past few weeks. I can’t get the image of sunflowers (Ukraine’s national flower) out of my mind. It’s such a powerless feeling and I wanted to say something about it. I recall Porter’s work from your essay. Sunflowers have so much to offer in terms of symbolism. The solidarity of ranks of sunflowers in a field standing strong against the bitter winter wind blowing from east, the bear metaphors, never-ending winter, the promise of summer sunflower fields spilling over with frolicking children…there’s fear and hope, and we must make sure hope wins the day. Thanks for your support, Mark. I appreciate it. ๐Ÿ™‚

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  3. My favourite is 194. It struck me today that the dictator/leader starts some war for whatever real or imagined reason. And then sanctions hit. And while I can see that they’re a good tool to put pressure on without declaring war, they really hurt the people not the leader who made the decision. War just sucks. THat’s all there is to it. In my opinion, war is only about loss. There are no winners. But I’m probably naive. There’s probably some appalling economic benefit for some narcissist somewhere.

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    1. Thanks so much. I agree with you. The old man calling the shots might lose a few rubles due to sanction, but he’s nowhere close to being in harm’s way. That level of detachment from reality is really dangerous in a narcissist like putin (or the former guy over here in the States), who has his hands on the nuke button. This stuff never ends well, and it’s the regular people who must pick up the pieces when all is said and done. What a mess this is… The only ones who benefit from war are those in the military-industrial complex, the craven politicians who do their war-hawk bidding, and the propaganda outlets who spread lies to the masses. Everyone else just gets screwed. ..

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    1. Thanks, Grace. Sunflowers are certainly iconic and symbolic. Ukraine’s national flower is such a good metaphor for beauty and freedom. I’m so glad to know you enjoyed these. I felt the need to say something about the situation over there, you know? ๐Ÿ™‚

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  5. These are dark times in so many ways, Mike. How lovely if we all had the joy of children playing among the summer sunflowers. What happens to make adults so aggressively unrestrained. Beautiful acknowledgment of Ukraine and the unfathomable cruelty of Putin. I just don’t understand it. Hugs.

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    1. Thanks, Diana. I honestly don’t think normal, healthy people can understand the mind of a monster like Putin (or his fawning sycophants who have orange skin and a bad comb-over who wish to be like him). It’s a surreal feeling to know this is happening in the 21st century. Have we not learned anything by now? Or is our collective memory so short that we forget and are doomed to repeat our atrocities over and over? Hope may be all we have, hence those sunflowers and the laughing of children… Hugs right back at you! ๐Ÿ™‚

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  7. Itโ€™s sad how greed is insatiable. And so many innocent souls must suffer because of it. If only everything could be wonderful and perfect. But then without light, there are no shadows. Beautiful writing as always, Mike. ๐Ÿ™‚

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  8. So touching and revealing to the core, my friend. It’s hardly believable that the war is slowly walking back to war through one unapologetic dictator.๐Ÿ˜’๐Ÿ˜Œ Quite sad! #196, #198 I stand with Ukraine, in prayers. May Putin’s selfish ambitions fall. Thank you for sharing.๐Ÿ‘

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    2. Thanks, Lamittan. At some point humanity has got to figure this out, right? I mean, how many chances are we going to get before time runs out? Hold onto hope and do our best to stand by our fellows, I suppose.

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      1. Should be that way. But power ochlagogues and warlords the like of putin understand nothing but war. The human race is suffering in many ways sadly. What is left is indeed to support each other in whatever way we can rather than instigating violence and war.

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    1. Thanks, Rhyan. Glad to know some of these little guys spoke to you. It’s strange, but I realized very recently that I have no photos of sunflowers. They’re so common where I was raised that they never really appealed to me. Now there’s profound symbolism attached to them (Ukraine’s national flower) and I wish I had some sunflower images to post as a tribute to Ukraine.

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  10. All of your haikus are amazing, Mike. This one is my fav this week, โ€œglowing sunflowers
    where there is light there is hope
    we stand with Ukraineโ€ ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฆExcellent poetry! ๐Ÿ˜

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    1. Thanks, Jeff. Your support and kindness are so appreciated. I’m glad these resonated with you. Still hoping for the best for our friends in Ukraine. ๐Ÿ™‚

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    1. Thanks so much for such a nice review. The symbolism is indeed striking, and I hate the thought of those symbolic sunflowers being destroyed, the petals falling in the mud and trampled by boots. I hope for the best, as the world does. I’m grateful to you for your kind support as well. ๐Ÿ™‚

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    1. Thanks a bunch, Cindy. It’s so difficult to find hope nowadays, but in this collection, Ukraine’s national flower is a perfect symbol of hope. Ukraine needs our help, even if all we can do is speak out about what’s happening and try to raise awareness and inspire hope. It’s a powerless feeling, but I wanted to speak out. Thanks for your kind words. ๐Ÿ™‚

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  13. Reblogged this on Mitch Teemley and commented:
    My Featured Blogger this week is Mike Utley of Silent Pariah. Mike has nearly complete hearing loss, but lives a rural area with few if any deaf support services. Hence, the internet is his way of communicating with the world. And communicate he does–his poetry and photography speak volumes. Indeed, Mike is not silent, and he is no pariah.

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    1. Thank you so much for this, Mitch! I’m truly humbled by this. It means a lot to me to know you thought so highly of my poetry and photography that you’d consider me for such an honor. I appreciate this so much! I have to admit I’m pretty exited right now! Thanks again! On a side note, I have three Isaac Air Freight albums from many years ago, so this is extra-special to me. ๐Ÿ™‚

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