Pampas grass

Pampas grass
marsh mud glistens
in the rowboat


salt marsh
sunlight flecks the egret


marsh wren's cry
the sun ripples onto the mud


wetland chill
a patch of ripples disappears


marsh lightning
the tree's blossoms open
into egrets


marsh bubbles surface on the twilight


wetland channel
the moon spreads onto the grass

lingering heat

lingering heat
the dirt road ahead of me

reflections

reflections
from a still pond
frozen

empty bandstand

empty bandstand
the sounds of crows rise
to the tree tops

the blue

the blue
in the windbreak's drift
twilight

sunlight

sunlight
the ferry gate lifts
with starlings

late fall

late fall
a tea leaf dries
in the cup

distant combers

distant combers
a ship's mast rises
from cattails

autumn light

autumn light
the cormorant's neck swells
near the river

summer's end

summer's end
a racehorse runs behind its shadow

winter night

winter night
the core of an apple
full of seeds

the wet road

the wet road
joins its scent with grass
a squirrel's head

strangers in the mist

strangers in the mist
fence posts

fishing village

fishing village
the bow lanterns fade
in the dawn

Walking home from the train...

early autumn
the shadows of leaves fall on me

fall chill
a dog barks at the wind

crow song
the bark of an old tree

autumn noon
buzzards sun on the water tower

the egret

morning breeze
the curve of an egret's shadow

noon heat
the egret stands on its shadow

afternoon rain
an egret bends near cattails

sundown
an egret's silhouette taller than the marsh grass

winter light

winter light
a brick's shadow falls
on the next brick

New Year's Day

New Year's Day
unmarked snow brightens the sunlight

blackout

blackout—
the chair's shadow deepens
in the moonlight

evening shower

evening shower
the cricket chirps once

The last Day of Coney Island's Steeple Chase

shattered bottles
railroad ties glitter towards Coney

boardwalk sunlight
sand in the sloppy joe

a gull's shadow pecks at popcorn

parachute ride
cotton candy stuck to the seat

autumn
the steeple chase slide
full of color

dusk—
the covered pool ripples
stringer lights

ice cream truck

ice cream truck
sunlight on the treetops

Haiku Sequence: Coney Island Light

Coney Island dawn
a cupie doll in the sand


the spray from a seawall
rainbow


water ride
a gull slides down the sky


sun bathing shadows darken

Coney Island dusk
trash fires brighten the sand


Lighthouse in the sea breeze
faint stars

winter branch

winter branch
the sparrow's roundness
in the wind

Bronx December

Bronx December
the gorilla cage smells of snow

sketchpad

sketchpad --
sunlight inches
towards the fly

honeysuckle

honeysuckle
a cloud of gnats drifts
over the pond

9/11 senryu sequence

Morning sun
One floor of people collapses another


debris
in a cloud—
people


noon darkness
a cloud
within me


nine-eleven
the wind in my ears


subway breeze
the sound of pigeons
above the grating


twilight
the blackbird's silence
from tree to tree

Senryu

Maltese fried shrimp
all those black eyes staring at me

Hooverville
a moon in every puddle

Jack O' Lantern

Jack O' Lantern
shadows pass through each other

haiku sequence: lake crossing

winter
the blue light in the ice

dusk lingers on the frozen lake
raven's cry

night sky
my breath fades with its sound

the crow
campfire embers whiten in the dawn

noon crossing
even my shadow underfoot

spring noon

spring noon
blubells brighten a cloud's shadow

thaw

thaw
the wolf tastes
air

autumn

autumn
the pond fills
with leaves

crushed pumpkin

crushed pumpkin
the sun's rim dips behind the roof

one - line haiku

snow brighter than the day moon between the caribou

fall light

fall light
the shadows of leaves
follow the wind

fifty buzzards

fifty buzzards
off the water tower
winter trees

a spider's thread

a spider's thread
between the eave and door --
morning sunlight

snow storm

snow storm --
the spray covers
the jetty

new year's eve

new year's eve-
the party's noisemakers
in the rest room

winter surf

winter surf
a dog smells distant places
on other dogs

old photo

old photo
my father as a child
looks past me

playground

playground
after the rain--
the sound of traffic

rain forest leaf

rain forest leaf
mites and a locust step on each other

clouded night

clouded night
algae glow in the bow wave

tree ice

tree ice
sunlight inches down the bedroom chair

cloudburst

cloudburst
flecks of sun on a thorn bush

cold spring night

cold spring night
a line of distant fires
above the dune

morning haze

morning haze
mosquitoes rise from the lake

leaping salmon

leaping salmon
the sun's reflection falls to the rocks

closed snow street

closed snow street
sunlight stops at the house windows

spring field

spring field
the crow pecks at its shadow

old snow

old snow
the earth's shadow moves up the tree

moonless night

moonless night—
the smell of the pond
in the bull frog’s cry

Day Long Wait

mourning dove’s song
the sun rises through the trees

blue sky
white blossoms gather the light

Egg Harbor dusk
a crow brightens the sky

spring trees
the stillness of the cold night

The First Day

The first day at summer camp, a few counselors took the children to the lake for swimming. I didn't know how to swim and so I watched from the deck. I didn't like the idea of living things in the water. One boy overheard me tell the counselor that I couldn't swim and told me that there were rats as big as dogs that could swim in the lake. A little later, another boy screamed snake while he was wading near the shore. A counselor ran over and discovered that someone had relieved themselves. I was repulsed. I started to walk away from the crowd and along the shore and noticed something on the lake. I looked more closely and realized it was an insect standing on the undisturbed lake's surface. I was in awe of it. At first, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Then it lifted one leg and placed it on the surface again.

the mountain top dimples under the strider's leg

The counselor approached me and asked if I would like to go row boating. I told her that I didn’t know how and she said she would row. I agreed and we went to the deck where the boat lies. The wind grew stronger in the late afternoon breaking up the sun’s reflection into choppy bits of light. We shoved off from the deck, and I heard the rush of water then a pause. The lifted oars would rub against the fittings as she pushed forward in the wind. We came closer to a strange looking boulder with what looked like as pock marks all over its surface. She told me it was once a volcano a long time ago.

Volcanic rock
the wind across the lake

The sun dipped below the silhouetted forest. The wind faded with the light and we headed back to the landing. As we lifted ourselves onto the deck, something on the water passed by

A leaf in and out of twilight

my attempt at one-stroke haiku

the old man and toddler sway between steps

my first one-line haiku attempt

the mountain top dimples under the strider's leg