Lauren Taylor • Lauren's Haiku •

American Haiku Poet: Cor Van den Heuvel When I first signed up for the class Global Haiku, I had no idea what I would learn. I didn’t know anything about haiku except that it usually consists of three short lines, making one poem. Throughout the semester I have learned many things. I didn’t only learn from my professor, Dr. Brooks, but I learned from the haiku authors we read. One of the authors that I find intriguing is Cor Van den Heuvel. Mr. Van den Heuvel was born and raised in then United States of America. Throughout his life he has lived in many places along the East Coast. He currently lives in New York City with his wife. He is known as one of America’s leading haiku poets. As for his contributions to haiku, Mr. Van den Heuvel writes out of everyday experiences. I believe he writes mostly from his experiences, not others. I’ve noticed that he doesn’t write about the rare moments of his life. He focuses on the moments that a majority of people can relate with. I also noticed that Mr. Van den Heuvel likes to write about baseball. I think this is an interesting thing to write about. I chose, as my class project, to write haiku about soccer. I noticed that is easy to write about something that you take pleasure in. I think this is why his haiku on baseball are so effective. The haiku, by Mr. Van den Heuvel, that I chose to write about vary in their subjects. I tried to chose two that were similar so I could compare them and his writing. I hope that the simple, everyday moments that he writes about are clear through these examples. the shadow in the folded napkin                                            The Haiku Anthology, 232 When I first read this haiku I didn’t like it. I was trying really hard to understand what he was trying to convey through this haiku. Why would someone write a haiku about a napkin? After I studied Mr. Van den Heuvel’s writing style, I found more respect for this haiku. I was reading into it too much. It is supposed to be simple, possibly simple beauty. Everyone has seen a napkin folded for him or her at a restaurant. The thing I notice about those napkins is the shape they are in. Mr. Van den Heuvel noticed the shadow the napkin cast. It was a look at something that most people don’t think to look at. Now, I think this haiku is wonderfully simple. I wouldn’t want anyone to write extensively about the dinner or the moment. A haiku about the napkin lets the reader place him or herself where they want. I have two images that come to mind when I read this haiku. First I picture a beautiful, summer day. There are people out to lunch and they sit outside. The shadow that the napkin casts is very noticeable. The angle of the sun is perfect on the napkin, possibly causing a unique shadow. The other image I get is of a couple at a very fancy dinner. It is not necessarily at a restaurant. The woman enters and sees how beautifully the table is set. The focus goes to the napkin and its shadow. It shows the simplicity of the event, despite all the work that was behind it. hot night turning the pillow to the cool side My first thought when I read this haiku was, “Ah yes, I’ve been there, done that.” I can say confidently that every reader has experienced this before. The reason I chose this haiku to include in this paper was because the feelings it gave me. I could feel the “hot night”. I know how it feels to be lying in bed, sweating, wanting to be cooled off somehow. I could also feel the coolness of the other side of the pillow. I pictured myself flipping the pillow and also moving my legs to the cooler parts of the bed. The juxtaposition of the hot night with the cool pillow makes this haiku unique. I love how Mr. Van den Heuvel focuses on one feeling yet gives two sides to it. First he makes the reader feel the heat then he helps the reader cool off. I think this shows his writing style well. This is not a major event in anyone’s life but everyone can relate to it. Another haiku of Mr. Van den Heuvel’s that I enjoy is below. after the shower listening to my self drip Mr. Van den Heuvel’s play on words in this haiku are what caught my eye. He decided not to use feelings to reach the reader. Rather he used the words to catch the reader. With the first two lines, “after the shower… listening to my,” the reader doesn’t know exactly what he is talking about. The shower could be one of many things. Was it raining, a wedding shower, or an everyday shower? It’s not until the third line that the reader gets a bit clearer of a picture, “self drip.” I however still don’t think this makes the haiku a single image. The two images I have in my head are very different. The first one that came to mind was someone just stepping out of a shower/bath. They are standing in the bathroom just air drying for a while. While standing there they hear the drip of the water off his or her body. I think Mr. Van den Heuvel was picturing or experiencing this when he wrote the haiku. I think this because showering is common among people. The second image I have is of a man or woman standing just inside a doorway having come in from the rain. This image has more details in my head than the simple bathing image. I get a feeling from the person in the haiku. I can see the stress on his or her face from being stuck in the rain without an umbrella. I also feel that this person doesn’t necessarily want to be hearing him or herself drip. Almost as if every drip makes the feeling more intense. the batter checks the placement of his feet as the strike goes by The Haiku Anthology, 229 I absolutely love this haiku. When I first read it I think I actually laughed out loud. I pictured the batter looking down at his feet, digging them into the ground then looking up as the ball is in front of him. There is a surprised look on his face and then he hears the umpire call it a strike. I think that it is the look and feeling that the batter has in this haiku which makes the haiku good. You can also almost see this as the beginning to a story. This is only the first scene in the obvious ones to follow. Writing a haiku about something you love is always pleasing. When you can find humor and express it about that thing you love, that is unique. I think Mr. Van den Heuvel accomplished this. His focus was directly on the batter and nothing else. It showed the character completely. I can say that I think I know this character personally. I mostly I enjoyed the humor of this haiku. slow inning the right fielder is playing with a dog This haiku also has a play on words. Once again Mr. Van den Heuvel has used the first two lines to create one image and then uses the third line to change it. Within the first two lines all you see is a baseball game. It could be a slow inning but then the right fielder gets a ball, but that is not the case. The right fielder is playing with a dog. Mr. Van den Heuvel does a great job of directing the image the reader is creating. I picked this haiku only because of the dog. I am not a fan of baseball, but I do occasionally play. I will admit though, if I were playing any game I would stop to play with a dog. My image after reading this haiku was of a pick up game between the neighborhood children. There are just enough people to play with two teams. The ages vary on both teams, the ones that are at bat now are the younger kids. The field players recognize that the ball won’t get past the diamond. As a result of this their minds wander. The right fielder happens to be lucky and is able to play with a dog during the inning. In his writing, Cor Van den Heuvel mostly uses everyday experiences. His style of writing simply is very effective to the reader. He also does a great job of playing with the words to connect with the reader. If you enjoy these style haiku, Mr. Van den Heuvel is the poet to read. —Lauren Taylor