“A Few Haiku & Senryu (64)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry

© 2025 by Michael L. Utley

(#379)

my life
bereft of kin and ken
December trees

…..

(#380)

a whisper of hope
just enough
to tear me to pieces

…..

(#381)

these heavy skies
and the burdens they carry
dove’s cries

…..

(#382)

expectant hush
beginnings and endings
we yearn for both

…..

(#383)

don’t ask of my heart
there are dark places therein
even I fear to tread

…..

(#384)

a journey
of a thousand lies begins with
“I love you”

43 thoughts on ““A Few Haiku & Senryu (64)””

    1. Thanks, trE. Yeah, some dark stuff today. Thinking about some recent and distant memories that still still have their claws in me, I suppose. Hope you’re doing well, friend. Here’s hoping your week will be peaceful. 😊

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      1. Oh, I absolutely love those two! The dark and deep are what I crave sometimes. They’re written exceptionally well, and felt like the meat of the chain, you know?

        You’re welcome. I’m alive and well. I’m not going to complain. “15 minutes at a time.”

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    1. Thanks, Liz. Very kind of you to say. It felt good to get some new stuff onto the page today (it’s been five months of writer’s block). Glad to know these found favor with you despite the dark tone. Hope you have a good week. Stay warm! 😊

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    1. “…guarded vulnerability…”

      You nailed it, Annette. This is the very essence of this bunch. Your insight is always spot-on, and I appreciate your stalwart support. I’ve been going through some things recently that have left me confused and angry and hurt, and I’m glad I was able to put a little of that into words today.

      I hope your upcoming week is peaceful. 😊

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    1. Thanks, Russ. A bit on the bleak side today, but at least the words flowed for a while. I count that as a win. Hope you’re staying warm up there. The weather looks like it wants to snow here, apparently, but it’s as blocked as my writing has been these past few months.

      Have a good week. 😊

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  7. Thank you so much for sharing these pieces, Mike. Each of these haiku / senryu struck me deeply — there’s a weight and a quiet honesty in the lines that lingers long after reading.

    Lines like

    “don’t ask of my heart — there are dark places therein even I fear to tread”

    and

    “a journey of a thousand lies begins with ‘I love you’”

    remind me how often beauty and pain walk hand in hand. You’ve captured that fragile space between longing and loss, hope and despair — and yet, there’s a raw courage in speaking it aloud.

    Your words offer a mirror to the hidden corners of the heart, my friend, where fear, memory, and longing reside. Thank you for giving voice to those silent places. Reading these feels like standing by storm-tossed seas in the darkness, and still trusting the hush after the waves.

    You’ve done more than write my beautiful friend — you’ve held up a light.

    Looking forward to whatever you share next. 🙏

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    1. Most sincere thanks, Saima, for such a moving review of these little ones. I’m going through some things right now that have sort of toppled the foundations of my world in many ways. I just needed to speak out the only way I know that can give me comfort and perspective. Beauty and pain, hand-in-hand, indeed. That reminds me of my mom in her garden, her safe haven amid the din and tumult of her marriage to my awful father. Or my own adventures with music when I could still hear normally and would play my guitars to quell the urge to harm myself in my youth. I do believe beauty and pain are the closest of kin–each cuts deeply, each bleeds freely, and it’s impossible to separate the two after a while, or to even differentiate between the two.

      (Here I am, lost in some distant reverie, some memory of looking at mountains at sunset or standing on a headland overlooking the Pacific or staring into the kind brown eyes of my dear departed black Lab Dexter all those years ago…)

      Writing hurts sometimes, Saima, but it’s a hurt I embrace because it cleanses the soul. I’m grateful there are other people who understand and see the beauty despite the pain.

      You’re very kind, my friend. 😊

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  8. Dear Mike, these are all stunning and I can certainly relate. The depth of sadness and sense of hopelessness that you always capture in your work is breathtaking. When you have a break and you come back you certainly did so with a bang my friend. BRAVO.

    “don’t ask of my heart
    there are dark places therein
    even I fear to tread”

    This is my favorite, usually I can not pick one either. In this case, my heart when to a time when I knew exactly what this felt like and no one should ever have to go there.

    Thank you for sharing these gorgeous pieces and there are many people who have dark shadows in their life. I will never apologize for mine or how I feel. I use to all the time but we are the only ones who have lived our lives and considering our childhood and teenage years we have done pretty well. I am grateful that you share your feelings with us raw and untainted. Blessings my friend.

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    1. Kindest thanks, Joni. It was a relief to see some new material emerge. I hope it continues for a while. These are particularly dark, for sure. I seem to find more inspiration in bleak themes, and when wintertime arrives, the words seem less stubborn and more willing to flow. It snowed here last night, and it’s cold and depressing–just my kind of environment for writing. (Weird, I know…) Just wanted to confront some of the anger, hurt and confusion of recent events that have impacted me (you know what I’m referring to). Themes of betrayal and abandonment and bitterness. The Human Condition.

      Anyway, I’m always pleased to know my words strike a chord with you, my friend. We do indeed share a kinship of sorts, and I know that’s why you understand why I write what I do. Wishing you and Scott all the best. Have a peaceful week. 😊

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      1. dear Mike, yes indeed we do have a kinship. I do know what you’re talking about and I think it’s healthy to get those feelings out there. I certainly have done my share of that and I will never apologize for it. I was reading a TS Elliott poem last night and talk about sad, yet that did not stop from making him famous and also getting people to read his work. I for one was a fan at sixteen and still am. There is nothing like honesty to create a beautiful piece of work whether it’s in art, photography, music, or in writing.

        I can’t imagine never hearing music again. It helps me to write and you don’t have that either. When I am blocked, I can put on beautiful music and I am able to write, usually something.

        I truly hope that your block is permanently lifted. Mine comes and goes.

        We both send our love, hugs and blessings to you. We really enjoyed reading these. Big hugs my friend.

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    1. Thanks, Kirsten. Sometimes the dark stuff demands attention, you know? A little poetic venting goes a long way in clearing one’s mind.

      Here’s hoping things are good in your world. Snowy here, and cold. Wishing you a grand upcoming week, friend. 😊

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    1. Thank you, Diana. This bunch is quite depressing. I’m going through some stuff right now that has sort of knocked the wind out of me, and there doesn’t seem to be much light at the end of the tunnel. Medical, family, political…you name it. So there’s a strong sense of abandonment and uncertainty in my life at this moment and I don’t know what’s going to happen. I was just glad to see some words appear after several months of silence.

      Hugs right back at you, my friend. 😊

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