Japanese Haiku

I wrote a haiku some time ago, and I'll share it with you. But first lets get some background information on the origins.

Japanese invented a very interesting form of poetry with very strict rules. The poet was only allowed 5 syllables in the first stanza, 7 syllables in the second, and another 5 in the last stanza. This form of poetry is called Haiku. A poet had to be very skillful in portraying their thoughts in a short sentence.

This is the haiku that I wrote.

ひまわりや Sunflowers
たいようめざして Growing taller everyday
のびのびと Reaching for the sky

Do you like it? I wanted to portray the feeling of optimism that sunflowers symbolize, always reaching for the sun. Even though it may be short, it still makes you think, doesn't it.

One poem that really struck me though, is even shorter. It was written by a Japanese, and I will try and translate it as best as I can.

せきをしてもひとり "Cough!" Still alone.

It might be too short for you to understand the message, but what I take from it is a very sad story. A man is in his silent house, he coughs, but there is no one to help him out, no one to say if he is OK, no one else but him in his misery. In a few words, the poet has given an example of a big human problem, loneliness.

Loneliness is a big issue for a lot of people. Many people might have lots of friends on Facebook, or at school, or at parties, but when they get home, do they have anyone who really cares for them?

I sometimes wish I had a friend I could talk to all the time, about any of my troubles, and that they would genuinely listen and care for me. This will always be a dream, because everyone has their own troubles they need to take care of, let alone their friends... Lucky I have God to talk to.

God won't leave me, or get annoyed at me for whining about life so much. God is suitably called the "wonderful counselor". That man in the short poem above, probably didn't have God in his life, which left a gaping hole. Nothing man made can ever fill that hole, except for God's love.

Thanks for reading my blog, and I hope you learn something new!

treebytheriver