Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry comprised of three phrases.
Traditional haiku uses 17 syllables (5:7:5) but contemporary haiku in English often ignores this rule. A haiku is typically about nature, the earth and the natural world and are designed to be thought-provoking. These original haiku poems are by Anthony Rutledge and are mostly written in the contemporary free style format.
There are over 2,000 Haiku on this site in ten different themes: Australian, Beach, Garden Sundial, In the Mirror,Kimono,Motherhood,Ships and Oceans,Spring,Windjammers and Miscellaneous.
living elderly--
not helpful
to correct the young
living elderly--
in lightning
a trellis of roses
living elderly--
my home's most worth
the breath of mornings
living elderly--
a lily out
out of the pond
living elderly--
a whiskey in the yard
sipped with the moon
living elderly--
falling in love
with twilights
living elderly--
the Universe has written
my poems before I start Re: Sarah Kay
living elderly— a grey day solar lights around the garden
living elderly— dripping spears of icicles such little sun
living elderly— the hado~ cherry blossoms windless and floating
living elderly— drenching rain a child stares from the car port
living elderly— overnight snow bringing the birds in with my seeds
living elderly— listening in the silence no one talks to
living elderly— strolling more in the street when red leaves gather
living elderly— the sundial and I in a flash of lightning
living elderly— in the naked tree two webs stringing dew
living elderly— the light in rock pools letting the tides pass over
living elderly— overnight storm drips in the sound of puddles
living elderly— to a dark dream the song birds first out of dawn
living elderly— in grandma‘s garden their comforts of jam and scones
living elderly— needed saving from the sun my many ripe tomatoes
living elderly— the sun on a blue lake far out at sea
living elderly— fragrant open rose the garden Buddha sniffing, too!
living elderly— curling up as butterflies autumn leaves of gold
living elderly— a mirrored pond the dragonfly riding a reed
living elderly— a hummingbird floats in a shimmer of light
living elderly— the silver fox evading the moons through the trees
living elderly— footprints on a lone beach walked to the sea
living elderly— the front gate bending flowers the old dog home
living elderly— prancing into the yard a white moth brings more green
living elderly— a winter‘s morning; in empty mist the sole drips
living elderly— rain on the beach sand unable to float the whale
living elderly— blown from the sand dunes on the sea winds they came from
living elderly— the hen house on his patch the red fox steals to
living elderly— the sinking sun stays in the photo behind her
living elderly— now, blown by autumn clouds in and out of the trees
living elderly— obeying me—yet nameless to the dog
living elderly— the weathervane‘s creak making nights colder
living elderly— a still bright blue the smoke of autumn streets away
living elderly— my peach tree fruits… the neighbour‘s house after their fire
living elderly— blocking the knee pain with thoughts on a rest
living elderly— the river Gum‘s last year to shadow the moons
living elderly— in the moon on a breeze Jasmine escaping
living elderly— autumn flutters to my shoulder, to my book
living elderly— a line of street lights but the red fox his dodging way
living elderly— our yard under snow the pet‘s plaque—named
living elderly— through autumn stillness the fenced crow—piercing
living elderly— arranging red apple slices on a square white plate
living elderly-- the thick morning fog came in and stayed , as if nothing
living elderly-- picking the last grapes before autumn rains
living elderly-- some moonlight must sink into the pond
living elderly-- suddenly awake a distant dream pulled shut
living elderly-- asleep in a canoe my lines being tugged
living elderly-- into a great silence the spout of a whale
living elderly-- honeysuckles giving lonesomeness a scent
living elderly-- the stretch of a kite at the length of its string
living elderly-- the barn owl folding some moon in its wing
living elderly-- who from which star may see us alone
living elderly-- the momentary rose in a crystal vase
living elderly-- fluttering the beauty it brought the second butterfly
living elderly-- neighbours commute to the same bus times
living elderly-- only me on the rose bed to dig the sunshine in
living elderly-- how the apples grow enough leaves to shade
living elderly-- in the quiet on a brook the silver moon
living elderly-- scenting the rain washed by it the white rose
living elderly-- their crunch SO delights autumn leaves across the lawn
living elderly-- in the eucalypt shadows I melt
living elderly-- once in a blue moon the moon on well-water
living elderly-- through mists of morning the busy street outside
living elderly-- through the bedroom door on rusted hinges
living elderly-- this cottage is enough in the moonshine
living elderly-- Lord!! such sunset fire orange clouds with golden tips
living elderly-- a lily out of the pond out of itself. Re: Nick Virgilio.
living elderly-- still in a twilight to understand dreams
living elderly-- their family visits like returning home
living elderly-- the seeds in the waves fizzed into shore
living elderly-- the baby smells toddlers carry
living elderly-- around the leafless trees I hear the dog scatter
living elderly-- summer afternoons in and out of , the days at school
living elderly-- listening to a silence where the tree fell
living elderly-- the contrary child turning their corner
living elderly-- a sunset leaving in wrinkled clouds
living elderly-- the sun lowers into the lives beyond
living elderly-- the sundial ticks under passing clouds
living elderly-- a crow paces the leafless tree
living elderly-- the old dog returns from his park
living elderly-- the whoosh geese bring into the water
living elderly-- wishes somewhere thrown in a fountain
living elderly-- no one special for just growing up
living elderly-- between the nights all the necessary eggs
living elderly-- the bird-seed flutters I stand alone in
living elderly-- oozing on the peach tree hailstone bruises
living elderly-- in one spring nap the Gum trees bud
living elderly-- magpies on the fences to and fro
living elderly-- how fragile grandkids hug
living elderly-- the fragrant moments of winter rains
living elderly-- a fledgling on the lawn its pink mouth to feed
living elderly-- which of those stars seems more alone
living elderly-- only the moonlight reads my Tarot cards
living elderly-- on reflections moonshine bends of the river
living elderly-- a rocker creaking the bones in it
living elderly-- with winter thawing down the streams to the sea
living elderly-- winter blowing all the light ‘til evening
living elderly-- the honey jar spreading sunlight on toast
living elderly-- the garden tool rust invisible
living elderly-- snow clouds my eyes losing their faces there
living elderly-- autumn leaves ―‘_‘-‗ alone again
living elderly-- the son‘s last call all about the divorce
living elderly-- the pen-pal letter again in calligraphy
living elderly-- returning starlight the mirror on the pond
living elderly-- the hour dawns take to lighten the yard
living elderly-- the crescent scooping the sea at moonrise
living elderly-- an owl hoot travelling the wind
living elderly-- the power of the tides returned to the earth
living elderly-- soul shapes in the sky of gulls
living elderly-- the corrugated waves the moons pull on
living elderly-- new dropped the foal struggles with its life force
living elderly-- how the storms stretch a rainbow
living elderly-- autumn wind on the pond the mirror there … not there
living elderly-- a fledgling dives into the sounds of its flight
living elderly-- the remains of a candle yesterday‘s light
living elderly-- insomnia in wall to wall sounds
living elderly-- afternoons begin the leave to shadows
living elderly-- a watched flower unfolds to the rain
living elderly-- an afternoon heat sniffed with the rain
living elderly-- a garden Buddha the moonlight seeks
living elderly-- the moon face cracked in a puddle of ice
living elderly-- all our years spent as mostly water
living elderly-- to the patch of sun a worn chair
living elderly-- first light opens the dark dream rubbing my eyes
living elderly-- a scent in the night spent among Pines
living elderly-- an owl‘s wing leaving goodbye
living elderly-- butterflies mate generations of eggs
living elderly-- how the wild geese migrate from their father land
living elderly-- bread crusts to the flaps of pigeons
living elderly-- to a great grandchild great mystery
living elderly-- the old bent guy overlooked
living elderly-- leaves and me with autumn
living elderly-- a walk through the garden with empty hands
living elderly-- watching the sunset pinpoint the stars
living elderly-- autumn falls in the hearing of leaves
living elderly-- dust to dust moved about the house
living elderly-- the returns of my breath to the nearness of trees
living elderly-- in the breath of the nearness of trees
living elderly-- white-gloved in her Sunday pew
living elderly-- powering the pot plants the moon moves on
living elderly-- the older songs with all the words I know
living elderly-- stirred in the cups of tea a leaf of mint
living elderly-- 'A spring thaw' I whisper to the dog
living elderly-- how silently dawn colours
living elderly-- licking at the autumn leaves a tongue of the flames
living elderly-- a wrinkled ocean washed in the sun
living elderly-- I think about the autumns as carpets of gold
living elderly-- I consider butterflies created by love
living elderly— a grey day solar lights around the garden
living elderly— close to the fish pond the loudly croaking frogs
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