dandelion seeds

float away in a muggy air

the friends i lost

when i decided

to honor my truth

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 12/28/21

i find myself

standing before the sun

stitch me

heal me

in the places i cannot reach

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 12/27/21 

 i am the night

and yet

your blue eyes

*Published in The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue on 12/22/21

 where the moon crumbles into fog

*Published by horror senryu journal on 12/10/21

 id

y’know i wanna rip

this pair of red tights to the top

of my sex

scream topless at a waxing moon

too pure for my filth

*Published in the November 2021 issue of Versification

beyond our ache the birth of stars

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 11/27/21

before the altar a charred root unfurls

*Published by horror senryu journal on 11/26/21

 this solitude a dew-covered marigold

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 11/24/21

merlot and oh what a ride to hell

*

vines of ice climbing the walls of dreams

*

an anvil falls to the ocean’s floor. Such is regret

*

faith of a mustard seed fistfight

*

of plums and dragons. Gimme it all

*Published in Ant Ant Ant Ant Ant 2021

 peace until theraintheraintheraintherain

*

blank canvas but you chose the knife

*

between stars. rivers. the years disintegrate.

*

side eyeing the past present tense

*

moon. silver. your makeshift gods.

*Published in Ant Ant Ant Ant Ant 2021

upon my eyelashes

the remnants

of forgotten stars

*Published in the November 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

moon

over mountain

over sea

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 10/30/21 

 a bluebird trills beneath my dreams

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 10/29/21

peppermint oil

the autumn twilight

upon my skin

*Published in the October 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

 removed

from the bustle of cars

a field of goldenrods

*Published in The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue on 10/27/21

 and then your body became an ocean

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 10/25/21

 i am the lion stalking dusk

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 10/22/21

 to be the daffodil capturing dawn

*Published by Haiku in Action on 10/22/21

 this body. slab of granite. breaks.

*

here i am. rising sun. atomic bomb.

*

time slows the black of winter rain

*

just yr average nuclear family reaction

*

why days pummel me into dust i want to know

*Published in Ant Ant Ant Ant Ant 2021

between the sun

and my sweat

wild orchids

*Published in The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue on 10/20/21

 the wind but i am also a leaf

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 10/19/21

 radiation in my blood your blood

*

atlas

but have you

carried shame

*

it was only a pinch. throat punch. apocalypse.

*

every soul untethered but thanks for shopping

*

a bullet cuts the night alone with these thoughts

*Published in Ant Ant Ant Ant Ant 2021

**every soul was reprinted in Haiku 2022 (Modern Haiku Press)

37 years

how long it took

to love myself

*

1st kiss

how quickly the universe

expands

*Published in the October 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

 echoes of night the remains of a sycamore

*Published in The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue on 9/29/21

 war ends, war begins

all i want

is a quiet summer dawn

*Published in Suspect Device Zine (Turning Japanese #6)

 because i crave the nectar of Andromeda

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 9/25/21

 after the moonrise how i bloom

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 9/24/21

 free show

my white shirt

on a rainy day

*Published by Haiku in Action on 9/24/21

 we are more than a distant clap of thunder

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 9/20/21

 the feast (part one)

the monster climbs on top of you

and you let it

place the pillow over your head

it’s a game

the monster coos

but in your mind you know

there is no game

*

dilate

at times

the only comfort

i had

was the shadow

in my bed

*Published in Issue no. 22 of Anti-Heroin Chic

 the feast (part two)

the monster

has a skin suit and tie

the monster

pays its bills on time

but the monster

only desires

your pre-

pubescent flesh

*

resignation

i told the shadow

come closer

what else could i

call home?

*Published in Issue no. 22 of Anti-Heroin Chic

retina

come closer

i heard while sitting in my room

i just wanted to see you

the moon shyly said

~ (0) ~

my body is not beautiful

i admitted

it is covered in scars and dents

so is mine! and yet you humans

she laughed

worship every inch of my skin

*Published by Sledgehammer Literary Journal on 8/4/21

 petrichor...

we gather the remnants

of our hope

*Published in the July 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

in his arms i become the rain

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 7/17/21 

 temptress...

a dusting of starlight

falls across my chest

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 7/16/21

 because we have nothing left the sun

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 7/15/21

 watching the night fall from grace

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 7/13/21

 behind this silence a twilight in flames

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 7/11/21

after the match

strike your

toothless grin

*Published by horror senryu journal on 7/7/21

 my hand gently

caresses her face

(i knew i wasn’t straight)

*

recurring nightmare

the wolf licks his lips

beside my bed

*

teenage rebellion

i crush the cig with my

steel-toe combat boots

*Published in the July 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

moonlight

a rose unfolds

within the silence

*Published in the June 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku 

 ghost moon

i just want you

to see me

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 6/25/21

a warbler sings

to an audience of dust

in dreams

i am always stuck

in the wrong universe

*Published by Fresh Out: An Arts and Poetry Collective on 6/23/21

moon after moon the ache of being

*Published in Cold Moon Journal on 6/23/21

stomach punch

and yet

i was born

*Published in Suspect Device Zine (Turning Japanese #5)

**Nominated for The Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Individual Poem Award by the editor

dusty attic

the scent of

a grimoire

*Published by horror senryu journal on 6/21/21

from pink to violet

to the darkest indigo

this sunset

has touched my soul

in places i had forgotten

*

between the lands

of awake and sleep

a melody

rises from each tulip

waiting for your touch

*Published in the spring 2021 edition of The Bamboo Hut

 a quiet pond

reflects a pool of stars

this must be

what it feels like

to reach the gates of Heaven

*

the rain is gentle

and the wind is soft

today i vow

to bottle up and save

this moment of ahh

*

my thumb caresses

this piece of moonstone

i wonder

whose hands loved you

long before mine

*Published in the spring 2021 edition of The Bamboo Hut

 lost

when i don’t see

the lyricism in the steady

march of ants

and when i don’t feel

the expansiveness

of a night without a moon

then i know

i have lost myself

in the fray of this

modern world

*

a quick prayer

to breathe in

this rain-soaked night

before i rest

in the arms of grace

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #23

 beneath the covers

a bird trills

then a rumble of thunder

responds

this is

my favorite type

of morning

*

from above

like a streak of lightning

pummeling its way

through sodden clouds

your voice

transcends the darkness

of my boiled thoughts

*

come here

a poem

is a safe space

in which to open

up your heart

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #23

 awake

perhaps i will sleep

another day

another day when

the moon isn’t

so full and luminous

and the blackbird isn’t

so sweet and beautiful

*

where truth resides

in the pause

between your voice

and mine

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #23

 fine-toothed comb the crescent moon in my bones

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 6/13/21

what could have been the sound of rain

*Published in Paradigm Shift: The Travels of Rain on The Haiku Foundation’s website

 before sunrise shaking off a phantom moon

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 6/8/21

echoes in a vacant house regret

*Published by horror senryu journal on 6/4/21

in your snow the Lydian moon rises

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 6/2/21

through these doors

the wind

remains

*Published in Door to Door: Doorway on The Haiku Foundation’s website

 a robin then a wren

oh how i love

this sticky dawn

*Published in the June 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

 scent of rose

this fading

spring light

*Published in the May 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

 the first lamp

flickers into being

her fingers trace

the rose waiting

for a lover

(Tim Gardiner & Tiffany Shaw-Diaz)

*

despite the hour

the loneliness

of her belief

a church bell rings

within sunset haze

(Tim Gardiner & Tiffany Shaw-Diaz)

*These tan renga were inspired by The flower seller by Sir Alfred Munnings and published in issue 12.1 of Twelve Rivers (a journal of the Suffolk Poetry Society)

 doormat

my descent

into nothingness

*Published in Door to Door: Doormat on The Haiku Foundation’s website

to be

in a

river of

to be

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 5/19/21

**Nominated for The Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Individual Poem Award by the editor

 nameless hunger

the night

shifts blue to black

*Published by horror senryu journal on 5/19/21

of course

the mountain

wasn’t always

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 5/15/21

**Selected for commentary in re:Virals 302 on The Haiku Foundation’s website

***Nominated for The Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Individual Poem Award by the editor

 turn of the knob a new life

*Published in Door to Door: Doorknob on The Haiku Foundation’s website

wild youth

i used to pull my

food from the earth

*

bowl of soup

when i just

need a hug

*

no regrets

i eat the whole

pint of ice cream

*Published in the May 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal 

was

without

wanting

*Published by Heliosparrow on 4/29/21

 spiced tea

a little twilight

birdsong

*Published in the April 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

 how long must i wait

for the night to become

a kindred spirit

hold out your hand

and feel the warmth around

each hidden rose

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 4/19/21

 this year

a feast

of worms

*Published by horror senryu journal on 4/16/21

 solitude

how i water

my garden

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 4/15/21

 in the long

dark hallway of memory

is there light

in dreams

we occasionally slide into

the body of another

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 4/13/21

 lyrics to “beautiful (if u want it to be)”

this must be how

the fox feels

when her coat tingles with

the magic of star

becoming eternal

as the laws of geometry

unspool & reveal

harmonics unknown

to simple blood

& the moon

is vibrant enough

to transform rain falling

gently

upon decaying leaves

into soft jewels

*Performed by my friend paul, a musical side project of Tiffany Shaw-Diaz, on ep 03

 ROYGBIV

the voice of the sun ascending     red

with a dash of orange     in my bones

a cardinal sings     for the sky now yellow

drumming into my bed     a song bursts

through my walls     the way green

shapes a budding orchid     turning

its head to greet     a day full of promise

and yet i have known blue     breathed it in

then released     the indigo found

within uncharted depths     but at night

i still make room in my heart     for the whisper

of a violet horizon     begging me home

*Published in issue 1 of horse egg literary

 a slow cut

across my breast

killer moon

*Published by horror senryu journal on 3/29/21

 oh yes

it has been months

since it has been warm enough

to warrant the opening

of my apartment’s windows, and i

cannot get enough of this fragrance

the grass mixed with the trees

mixed with the swirls of my neighbor’s

nighttime cigar, and oh yes

this is what it means to live

to experience the aroma

of all that is alive

*Published by Central Coast Poetry Shows on 3/27/21

 faraway étude

the dusk within

a blue sea

*Published in the March 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

 field of stars

when i read the poems

of Mary Oliver

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 3/21/21

 honestly

in the end

i can assure you

i will not fret over

my lack of kale consumption

or the dollar amount resting

in my sundry bank accounts

instead i will ask myself

if i loved

if i lived true

to the pullings of my soul

and if i dedicated my life

to pursuits worthy of my time

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #22

 we need you

from plankton to galaxies

and everything in between

you are

and always will be

a necessary component

in this vast circle of life

*

and so i listen

to the wind and rain

the mountains and leaves

for the whispers of my creator

to once again fill

my ever-ready heart

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #22

 his scent a moonlit maple

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 3/14/21

gratitude

while watching

flakes of snow fall

i am thankful

to be here

to witness

this beautiful life

*

oh this makes me smile

during winter

i like to imagine

spring flowers

waiting patiently

but eagerly

to see us again

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #22

warfare

no one asked me

to be perfect

not even God

and yet here i am

demanding of myself

what no one ever wanted

*

over darkness

if you woke up today

held your head high

then you

my dear friend

have claimed victory

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #22

 until death do us part a sprig of hemlock

*Published by horror senryu journal on 3/12/21

 whole again among the lake and trees

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 3/11/21

 why have a name when you can be known as

the sound of a rainbow forming

after a warm spring rain

or the feel of a magenta twilight

resting upon a dewy rose

*Published by Skyway Journal on 3/9/21

 eternal

speak to me

in the language of rain

sweetly, gently

in the language

of a time without end

*

darker roads

so often

i am the night

covering the earth

with an ache

even i

have yet to name

*

reversal

i want to be

the snow that falls

upon your breath

to know you

as i once did

before dusk

ruled day

*Published in Fireflies’ Light: A Magazine of Short Poems #22

 Frida Kahlo

a flame rises

within the night

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 3/8/21

 babbling brook

this too

is peace

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 3/7/21

 wasting

five reduced-fat

crackers for lunch

and you salivate over

the withered meat

i have become

*Published and performed in the March 2021 issue of Versification

 motherless

i pull the moon in

a little closer

*Published in the March 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

 modern love

he swings with

a girl on video

*

February 14th

i crank up

My Bloody Valentine

*

empty wine bottle

you like it when

i’m easy

*Published in Suspect Device Zine (Turning Japanese #4)

**Nominated for The Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Individual Poem Award by the editor

 evening commute

a rainbow sunset

guides me home

*Published by Haiku in Action on 2/25/21

 not every color

has a name...

midnight jazz

*Published in the February 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

**Selected for the 2021 Red Moon Anthology

***Winner of The Haiku Foundation’s Touchstone Individual Poem Award 2021

 on your tongue the birth of a hex

*Published by horror senryu journal on 2/19/21

 darkest blue

the cold comfort

of my own thoughts

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 2/15/21

 crimson...

the dust between our lives

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 2/13/21

 a forgotten galaxy the river without a name

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 2/11/21

 fuchsia twilight

sometimes i

forget to breathe

*Published in the February 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

 revenge

my lips trace

a sharpened blade

*Published by horror senryu journal on 2/3/21

 in the past

i have known peace

but this night

is full of storms

without relief

*

a small

tendril of moonlight

what if

i held my pain

like a treasured lover

*

i know

the darkness will return

but

for this moment

i have found peace

*Published in the winter 2021 edition of The Bamboo Hut

twinkling frost

but i call it

magic

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 1/31/21

 nocturne...

the blue

within blue

*Published by Fresh Out: An Arts and Poetry Collective on 1/31/21

 along the pond’s surface moonlight dreams

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 1/30/21

 not everything

has an answer

deepening snow

*Published in the January 2021 issue of Stardust Haiku

 lyrics to “delia (testing the waters)”

testing

the waters

testing

the waves

dragging me deep

under the water

testing

the water

the ocean

the movement

*Performed by my friend paul, a side project of Tiffany Shaw-Diaz, on ep 01

each star the sound of rain in my bones

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 1/24/21 

 lyrics to “throes”

this lie

oh yes the one you told me

between the sheets

and i knew it wasn’t you

but the demon inside

*Performed by my friend paul, a side project of Tiffany Shaw-Diaz, on ep 01

 insomnia

within my chest

spiders writhe

*Published by horror senryu journal on 1/18/21

 Reprieve

Nothing quite compares to the night sky of my dreams. Constellations, planets, and stars are so large I can see even the most minuscule of detail. And let’s not forget about the colors of these celestial objects. Vibrant, and in every shade of the rainbow, I could gaze at them for hours, and sometimes, I do.

eyes closed

a little joy within

this ache

*Published in Issue 7 of the QuillS

 transfiguration

lit by the soft glow     of maple

candles adorn     this large tub

filled with rainbows     ricocheting

from quartz in every color     she

walks in     sits down beside me     smiling

a mother i didn’t know i had     wordlessly

washes my hair     hums a lullaby

in a dialect     before time became time

is of no importance here     i am allowed

to rest in the womb of this water     all night

if desired     she drops oil from cinnamon

clove and nutmeg     into my palm     and i

become the falling     Christmas Eve snow

*Published in Issue 1.35 of FEED

 quarantine

the spider now

a friend

*Published by Haiku in Action on 1/14/21

 dust gathers

for once i am

fine with that

*Published in the January 2021 issue of brass bell: a haiku journal

For the next seven days, the Tanka Society of America will feature my cherita on their Twitter page as a part of their 7 poems in 7 days project. Please check them out at @oftanka!

 still

a protest

your art and words

*Published by Haikuniverse (www.haikuniverse.com) on 1/10/21

 the wind in my hair a dusting of moonrise

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 1/9/21

 on the wings of a moth a poem

*Published by Cold Moon Journal on 1/6/21

the sound of paper drifting in the wind

 i wouldn’t say

i’m afraid

but i will say

i’m concerned

for what will

remain of me

when my life

comes to a close

will my art and words

enhance the senses

of another soul

seeking fullness

or will the catalogue

of my existence

fade into a drone

heard by no one

not even

the worms

*Published by Central Coast Poetry Shows on 1/5/21

If you are on Twitter, make sure to follow the Tanka Society of America. They will be posting my tanka for the next seven days as a part of their 7 poems in 7 days project!

 sleater-kinney kind of heartbreak

it’s like when

you stroke your

thumb ever so

gently across rose

petals & no

words can describe

that sensation maybe

velvet comes close

but it’s still

insufficient & here

i am two

decades later trying

to describe what

she felt like

when she kissed

me quite unexpectedly

& i spent

the next day

trying to untangle

my stomach

branded myself

a sinner

not roses

between my lips

i felt shame

*Published in issue six of Stone of Madness Press