Sunday, December 31, 2017

This Old Sweater

I don't mind change. A new haircut. A new hobby. Life's short, right? But for whatever reason, my favorite album hasn't changed in 20 years.

every day
the same sun
warms my veins

*Published in Contemporary Haibun Online, vol 13 no 4

Saturday, December 30, 2017

rainbow sky
when I forget
life is beautiful 

umbra
the things I hide
from myself 

embers
our friendship 
slowly ends

winter night
my shadow slips
into a dream

*Published in Incense Dreams 1.3
**rainbow sky was inducted into the issue’s Cave of Resilience

Friday, December 29, 2017

octopus
this bed
of nails

mist over moon the blame of rape

what were you saying these tentacles in me

into the mouth of violet burning night

*Published in the December 2017 edition of is/let

Thursday, December 28, 2017

office politics
a cheetah licks
the bone clean

*Published in Frameless Sky Issue 7

Monday, December 25, 2017

starless night
I say my apology
to the wind

*Published in the December 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Friday, December 15, 2017

frozen lake
another bout
of writer's block

*Published in Issue #122 of Hedgerow: a journal of short poems

Thursday, December 7, 2017

mother's funeral
the cool touch
of regret

*Selected haiku, NHK World Haiku Masters: December, Week 1

Sunday, December 3, 2017

hallelujah!
good hair
on a rainy day 

*Published in the December issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

Saturday, November 25, 2017

match strike
a sudden whisper
of truth

*Published in the November 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Sunday, November 19, 2017

cloudy night
the moon and I
disappear

unemployed
my long commute
to an empty fridge

*Published in Issue #59 of Presence

Friday, November 17, 2017

starlight
I remember
who I am

*Published in Issue #121 of Hedgerow: a journal of small poems

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

thistle
an old wound
surfaces

rough bark
the untold stories
of my body

*Published in the 2017 issue of Under the Basho (Modern Haiku section)

Friday, November 3, 2017

squiggles on paper
my niece says
it's a dinosaur

sisters
after all these years
friends

*Published in the November issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

graveyard
the secrets
I keep

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 10/31/17
*2018 Dwarf Stars Award Nominee

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

dragonfly
a ripple forms
on quiet water

*Published in the fall 2017 issue of Acorn: a journal of contemporary haiku

Sunday, October 22, 2017

grapevine
our words vanish
in the mist

*Published in the October 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Monday, October 16, 2017

the long road home
still
incomplete

*Published in Chrysanthemum 22 along with a German translation:

die lange Straße nach Hause
noch immer
nicht fertig

Saturday, October 14, 2017

heated argument
my curls refuse
to straighten

group therapy
I place a 6-pack
on the table

*Published in the October 2017 issue of Cattails

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

crickets
when we discuss
assault

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 10/11/17

Sunday, October 8, 2017

alone
even the wind
avoids touch

*9th place in the European Quarterly Kukai #19

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

forest fire
our Mother
weeps

*Published by My Haiku Pond's 2nd Annual Haiku for Change Event (2017) in conjunction with 100 Thousand Poets for Change

Sunday, October 1, 2017

quiet storm
I close my eyes
to listen

*Published in the October issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

Thursday, September 28, 2017

by the river
my thoughts
dive in

*Published on Cha No Keburi on 9/6/17 and translated into Italian by Lucia Fontana:

lungo il fiume
i miei pensieri
s’immergono

Sunday, September 24, 2017

yellowed
the pages
of our love

*Published in the September 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Friday, September 22, 2017

lost in thought
a moss-covered trail
brings me home

*Published in Issue #120 of Hedgerow: a journal of small poems

Thursday, September 21, 2017

after death
mother says
she's alive

seven floors
below ground
finally safe

sacred geometry
my body aligned
with his

lucid dream
I rewrite
our story

parallel universe
a monster runs away
from me

*Published in Incense Dreams 1.2

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Note: the following horror-themed haiku may contain images or subjects that some readers may find upsetting. 

Sunday morning
we exorcise the demon
of you

burnt sky
a sorceress warns
about the future

midnight
the ghosts of our past
flank my vision

hot breath
in my ear
chilled words

blindfolded
a voice whispers
don't scream

scarred and bruised
the hand reaching
for mine

chessboard
you move; I move
toward destruction

wasteland
I roam the empty streets
caked in regret

*Published in Issue 1.2 of Scryptic Magazine
**Sunday morning was selected for Scryptic's Best of 2017 - 2018 Anthology

Friday, September 8, 2017

hummingbird...
my thoughts come
and go

*1st place in the 21st Indian Kukai
**This poem was also featured on Haiku Commentary: 
https://haikucommentary.wordpress.com/2017/11/09/tiffany-shaw-diazs-hummingbird/

Sunday, September 3, 2017

midday hike
our brief journey
on the same path

500-year-old tree
now I know
how the ant feels

foggy cliff
I step into
the unknown

rustling petals
thank you for the reminder
 to breathe

*Published in Akitsu Quarterly Fall 2017
**foggy cliff was published by The Daily Haiku (Charlotte Digregorio) on 10/3/17

Saturday, September 2, 2017

melting snow
my heart
warms

*Published in the August 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Friday, September 1, 2017

family reunion 
extra salt
and vinegar 

*Published in The Heron's Nest Volume XIX, Number 3: September 2017
ah...
hot water 
meets the teabag

cozy bath
my ally
in healing

daydream
to be the river
filled with light

*Published in the September issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

morning calm
a young blackbird
finds her voice

*Published in Wild Plum 3:2 (fall/winter 2017)

Saturday, August 5, 2017

mid-argument the subjunctive chimes in

*Published in Sonic Boom Issue Nine

Thursday, August 3, 2017

warm day
he calls me
missus 

*Published in The Asahi Shimbun (Asahi Haikuist Network) on 8/4/17

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

midnight sun
the last stage
of grief

*Published by Ama no gawa on 7/31/17 and translated into Italian by Elisa Allo:

sole di mezzanotte
l’ultima fase
del dolore

Monday, July 31, 2017

potted lavender
our differences
set aside

*Published by Memorie di una geisha on 7/29/17 and translated into Italian by Eufemia Griffo:

lavanda in vaso
mettiamo da parte
le nostre differenze

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

open window
moonlight sneaks in
with the breeze

farmers' market
shoppers Instagram 
the rainbow

*Published in Issue #58 of Presence 

Thursday, July 20, 2017

tornado
where my car
used to be

*Published in The Asahi Shimbun (Asahi Haikuist Network) on 7/21/17

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

sudden chill
doors open
to a stranger

*Published in Haiku in the Workplace: Elevator Awkwardness on The Haiku Foundation's website

Friday, July 7, 2017

eventide
two lovers gaze
at the Northern Lights

*Published in The Asahi Shimbun (Asahi Haikuist Network) on 7/7/17

Thursday, July 6, 2017

July heat wave
the office AC starts
an early retirement

*Published in Haiku in the Workplace: The Broken Air Conditioner on The Haiku Foundation's website

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

ripe blackberry
for one moment
the world is still

*Published on Cha No Keburi on 7/2/17 and translated into Italian by Lucia Fontana:

mora matura
per un momento il mondo
rimane immobile

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

gallery opening
his tie
a starry night

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 7/2/17

Sunday, July 2, 2017

night's edge
what I can no longer
ignore

forgiveness
deep in the forest
soft light

uncharted land
this life
beyond skin

at home
in my body
new dawn

*Published in Issue #118 of Hedgerow: a journal of small poems

Saturday, July 1, 2017

Mother's Day
I tiptoe around
the past tense

*Short-listed for the 2nd Annual H. Gene Murtha Memorial Senryu Contest

Thursday, June 22, 2017

Ohio-Kentucky border
the same cornfield
on both sides

*Published in Modern Haiku 48.2
full moon
an overnight nurse
says a prayer

*Published in Haiku in the Workplace: Working Late on The Haiku Foundation's website

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

exiting thunder
the slow acceptance
of what is

*Published in the June 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

morning kayak trip
we discuss mother's illness
in deeper water

driving home
the one sycamore
I never noticed

shifting priorities
my harp
collecting dust

*Published in Akitsu Quarterly Summer 2017

Monday, June 19, 2017

ripe cherry
he studies
my lips

*Published on Ama no gawa on 6/19/17 and translated into Italian by Elisa Allo:

ciliegia matura
lui studia
le mie labbra

Sunday, June 18, 2017

up my spine
icy fingers pluck
phantom strings

bitter wind
one vulture circles
a moonless void

doomsday clock
the rhythmic scrape
of death's scythe

*Published in Issue 1.1 of Scryptic Magazine
**doomsday clock was selected for Scryptic's Best of 2017 - 2018 Anthology

Saturday, June 17, 2017

late spring
a wild rose
greets the sun

*Published on Memorie di una geisha on 6/13/17 and translated into Italian by Eufemia Griffo:

tarda primavera
una rosa selvatica
saluta il sole

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

summer heat
his hand
traveling lower

musk and bergamot
what he has left
on my sheets

*Published in Frameless Sky Issue 6

Sunday, June 11, 2017

first mammogram
my robe
slips away
and then
my dignity

*Published in Issue #16 of Moonbathing

Friday, June 9, 2017

blue flowers...
the way he says
I'm sorry

*6th place in the 20th Indian Kukai

Wednesday, June 7, 2017

office retreat
I reconsider
my drink limit

*Published in Haiku in the Workplace: Office Retreat on The Haiku Foundation's website

Friday, June 2, 2017

smashed eggs
my brain
post-Facebook

writer's block
a cat versus
the red dot

news-free day
high of 75
and sunny

*Published in Issue #18 of Failed Haiku
pizza for breakfast
my inner child
giggles

*Published in the June issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

Saturday, May 27, 2017

wrapping
your arms around me
lakeside breeze

envious...
how water moves
with the wind

no make-up
today I greet nature
as I am

diamonds...
what the sun makes
of the ocean

*Published in issue #113 of Hedgerow: a journal of small poems

Saturday, May 20, 2017

nightfall
the wind conjures
a ghost story

*Published in the May 2017 issue of Stardust Haiku

Monday, May 8, 2017

weeping willow...
his heart
spilling into mine

*Published by The Mainichi on 5/8/17
**Selected for Haiku in English: Best of 2017 (The Mainichi)

Sunday, May 7, 2017

morning cumbia
a little espresso
then a little more

*Published by Ama no gawa on 5/7/17 and translated into Italian by Elisa Allo

Cumbia al mattino
Un po’ di espresso
poi un po’ di più

Monday, May 1, 2017

midday improv
Charles Mingus
on shuffle

spotty internet
blowing the dust
off life

and now
a moment of silence...
dead cellphone

*Published in Issue #17 of Failed Haiku
crimson sunset
what you've said
what I've said

spicing things up
one side of the room
painted orange

one yellow sock
one blue
whatever - no one looks

*Published in the May issue of brass bell: a haiku journal
**crimson sunset was translated into Italian by Eufemia Griffo on her blog Memorie di una geisha:

tramonto cremisi
quello che hai detto
quello che ho detto

Thursday, April 20, 2017

smooth jazz...
I dip my brush
in blue paint

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 4/20/17

Friday, April 7, 2017

mushroom risotto 
the way my mother said
keep stirring

unshelled pistachios

my father
on marriage

*Published in Frogpond 40:1
**unshelled pistachios was featured in on down the road (the Haiku Society of America's 2017 member's anthology), and The Daily Haiku
***mushroom risotto was translated into Italian by Eufemia Griffo in Memorie di una Geisha:

risotto ai funghi
il modo in cui mia madre ha detto
continua a mescolare

Saturday, April 1, 2017

Sunday crime
I overestimate the nutmeg
for our breakfast muffins

a little moment
of rebellion
gelato in February

more groceries
than my trunk can hold
rainy Friday

*Published in the April issue of brass bell: a haiku journal 
craft store
deep in thought
over fake cherry blossoms

meditation
the dust can sit
too

lightning bolt
counting the seconds
until he retorts

foggy morning
perhaps one beer
would have sufficed 

family dinner
we let the wine
speak for us

*Published in Issue #16 of Failed Haiku