first date
what to wear
with snow on the ground

Shannon Hackl

first date
she begins to pick
colors for the bathroom

Brittney Gillespie

Curly or straight?
Jeans or skirt?
I wonder what he’s like

Amy Hoffstetter

school dance
cute boy
dancing with the enemy

Alya Saqer

first date
what to wear
with snow on the ground

Curly or straight?
Jeans or skirt?
I wonder what he’s like

top quarter champion

first date
what to wear
with snow on the ground

top half champion

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

bottom quarter champion

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

cootie free for the day
the brown haired boy
two seats to the left

Jenna Pelej

grade school valentines
for the whole class
but Johnny gets a kiss

Chonita Ziegler

so nervous
what will she say
the ring

Lindsey Jones

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

Sarah VanderZee

top half champion

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

champion

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

bottom half champion

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

bullets in the sky
a very long
engagement

Keith Chandler

heart ache
just like the song
sings

Philip Jones

burying his memory
leaves fall
on the ground

Lizabeth Hare

Valentine's Day
flowers in the snow
all white

Alya Saqer

heart ache
just like the song
sings

burying his memory
leaves fall
on the ground

top quarter champion

burying his memory
leaves fall
on the ground

bottom half champion

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

bottom quarter champion

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

secret admirer
no, mom
you don’t count

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

secret admirer
no, mom
you don’t count

Rachel Morrison

long stemmed roses
given to mom
group hug

Andi McCoy

overcrowded couch
sappy love movies
with my sisters on v-day

Joan Tirado

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

John Wright

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

Curly or straight?
Jeans or skirt?
I wonder what he’s like

Grade school Valentine
For the whole class
But Johnny gets a kiss

I hard a really hard time trying to choose between these two. One is like a little kid asking out their first person, while the other is like an adult who has been trying to date for quite some time. The first is hopeful, shy, and a new experience. However, the second is coming from a more experienced person.  He/she has dated and broken up and still alone. They are so different, but give such important times in life. The first, youthful and wanting...the second, older and needing. I think that is why I finally decided on the second.  Needing something is more important than just wanting it.  Rachel

I had trouble between these two haiku. The Curly or Straight I can absolutely relate to. This is the process I go through ever weekend or going out night. I wonder what he would like he being the men not a particular man. And the other haiku Grade School…. Is cute and shows the breaking of innocents. I just liked the end line. It made is flirtatious and that he was special to someone. I overall picked the curly or straight just because I dead on cant absolutely relate to it. Lorin

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

secret admirer
no, mom
you don't count

so nervous
what will she say
the ring

bullets in the sky
a very long
engagement

I thought these two haiku were cute and universal in content. Everyone has seen or had to check yes or no back in grade school. There was always a note being passed in class. Then, everyone has also had their mom give them some time of valentine's gift, even though they may have been wishing their secret admirer was someone else. I think both haiku completely describe valentine's day for anyone when they were in grade school. Brittney

I can compare these two because I think in some ways they are talking about the same thing but are also quite opposite. The first haiku is a new love, a new excitement of getting engaged. The second one is lovers that have been separated and have been engaged for a long time and are waiting until they can be together again to get married. The first one is exciting, and I feel as though the second one is kind of sad. Overall I really enjoy the feelings of both. Whitney

first date
she begins to pick
colors for the bathroom

Curly or straight?
Jeans or skirt?
I wonder what he’s like

overcrowded couch
sappy love movies
with my sisters on v-day

lovers skate
on the ice…
I just watch

I thought were a good pair and I had a hard time picking between the two. Both of them are just such “a girl thing”. In the first one the couple hasn’t even gone on a date yet and the girl is planning ahead to their life together. She’s not even looking at the second date or their first holiday together; she is already picking out colors for the bathroom. This is the most private room in the house and she’s picking out the colors before they’ve even had a date. The second haiku is fun because it’s so common for a woman to have a hard time figuring out what to wear and how to fix her hair. The first line just pulls you in and even though she doesn’t mention hair, you know exactly what she’s talking about. In this haiku, however, the woman is thinking about the man and their date together and doesn’t seem too worried about the future. Cindie

These were hard to choose between because I have experienced both. I was broke up with on Valentines Day, but have been on the other side on Valentine's Day. Being with the one I love. Lindsey

cooties free for the day
the brown haired boy
two seats from the left

whispers spread
across the room
check yes or no

overcrowded couch
sappy love movies
with my sisters on v-day

schooldance
cute boy
dancing with the enemy

I like these two together, because it's as if it tells a story. I see this classroom and this girl really likes this boy. She doesn’t feel like he is grose because she likes him. She finally gets up the courage to ask him to go out, and sends him a note in class. I like the way both of these fit, because they are childish. Boys were always more shy than girls, because they didn’t want to seem mushy or weird in front of the guys. So it was the girl that asks him. They fit and I think they are cute. Sarah

It was really hard for me to choose between the haiku I chose as the winner and the haiku that read, schooldance/cute boy/dancing with the enemy. I found it really hard to decide because I think both haiku’s are creative and you can feel the personality of the author shining through them. They both set a mood and include a feeling which I think is an important element of good haiku. Alyssa

Curly or straight?
Jeans or skirt?
I wonder what he’s like

so nervous
what will she say
the ring

burying his memory
leaves fall
on the ground

Valentine’s Day
flowers in the snow
all white

Both of these were so hard to choose from since they were both excellent haiku. I have experienced one and want to experience the other. They are just so good and it is hard to explain. I am just drawn to them and they stuck out in my mind. As soon as I read them I really liked them. It was hard to choose from in the match but I chose the one that I have no experienced and want to soon. Shannon

It was hard for me to pick between these because they both seemed so mature and symbolic. I ended up picking the first one because I had this image in my head of a lonely woman of Valentine’s Day. It seems like someone she really loved just died and she’s trying to look on the bright side and be happier but she can’t when she stands right in front of his grave. Joan

It was really hard to choose between these two haiku simply because I couldn’t relate to either of them. Although they both have some kind of imagery of nature; it was hard for me to understand what they were about. Chonita

lovers skate
on the ice . . .
I just watch

first date
she begins to pick
colors for the bathroom

These two were my top two from the matching contest, overall when it got to the very end from the top and bottom I really don't know which is my favorite cause they are from completely different ends of the spectrum. I think I really like each of these because I think a lot of people can relate to them. Depending on the mood the reader is in they are both equally as good. Lizabeth