haiku · My Thoughts

The Third Line of Haiku: Choices!

Featured Larada Horner-Miller
Haiku stamp: third line

The third line of a haiku always surprises me! It is supposed to have a punch, capturing the message of the haiku with a surprise and a sigh!

What’s the history of haiku?
Poetry word cloud: third line

“Traditional haiku poetry originally was used as an introduction to a Japanese oral poem known as a renga. In the 1500s, Japanese poets began composing haiku as stand-alone verse, and in the 1600s, poet Matsuo Basho elevated haiku to an important art form. The power of haiku lies in its ability to conjure a powerful image or evoke a profound feeling using very few words.” 

https://education.seattlepi.com/alliteration-poetry-5418.html

What’s a haiku? A Friendly Reminder!

It’s a three-line poem metered by syllables: five syllables in the first line, seven in the second and five in the third.

My new meditation practice feeds my haiku writing. On January 9, 2023, the meditation leader read a section from Living the Life of Awareness by Don Miguel Ruiz to start our practice. During our meditation, I ponder the reading then usually write a haiku afterwards. On this day, I wrote the following first two lines:

Where do I focus

In meditation, in life?

Then, as I considered the third line, the possibilities exploded:
Explosion: third line
  1. Focus on Jesus.
  2. On the crashing waves.
  3. Your strong hand in mine.
  4. Lin’s aged hand in mine.
  5. The hilarious!
  6. On my aging cat!
  7. On my broken heart!
  8. On God’s endless love!
  9. On my breath and yours.
  10. The gorgeous outdoors.
  11. On my neighbor’s needs.
  12. On my unshed tears.
  13. On the dawning day.
  14. On all mysteries!
  15. On the positive!
  16. It’s not about me!
  17. My belly button!

My third lines above vary from serious and introspective to humorous, and it’s always important to add humor to life. I love the simplicity of haiku with an economy of words yet a powerful image.

My favorite haiku reference is Natalie Goldberg’s book, Three Simple Lines, where she shares some of Basho’s haikus. She also has samples from several other Japanese poets.

So, which third line of mine did you like the best of my seventeen? Let me know.

Finally,
More poetry is needed: third line

Do you see the power of the third line in a haiku? Do you like haikus? If so, do you write them? If so, share one with me.

News, News, News!

All available at my website: laradasbooks.com or Amazon.com

~For me, it’s Christmas all year long! Here’s a variety of Christmas greetings from Flippo & Neeca, featuring his song, “When It’s Christmas Time in Texas”: https://youtu.be/mpJCUGffU3A

Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better? meme
Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy a chapter!

~My new book, Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better? WON the 2022 New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards in the Body, Mind & Spirit Category. Have you bought your copy yet? Vist my website: laradasbooks.com or at Amazon.

Just Another Square Dance Caller: Authorized Biography of Marshall Flippo meme
Baby, it’s cold outside! Read about Flippo inside where it’s warm!

~Have you bought a copy of Flippo’s biography yet? Believe it or not—it’s been two years. Go here for your hardback or paperback: https://www.laradasbooks.com or at Amazon.

Published by Larada Horner-Miller

Larada Horner-Miller is a poet, essayist and accomplished multi-genre author who holds a bachelor’s degree in English, with a minor in Spanish and a master of education degree in Integrating Technology into the Classroom. She is the accomplished author of six award-winning biographies, historical fiction, memoir, and poetry works plus three self-published cookbooks. Her sixth book, Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better?, is available in paperback and four e-book formats. Larada offers the reader the opportunity to look back at 2020 and the global pandemic through her prose and poetry through reading, then reflecting and responding. She addresses all the emotions she felt during this overwhelming time and leads the reader through to a self-access: bitter or better? Her fifth book is the authorized memoir and biography of world-renown square dance caller Marshall “Flip” Flippo. Just Another Square Dance Caller: Authorized Biography of Marshall Flippo is available now in hardback, paperback and four e-book formats. Recently Just Another Square Dance Caller won two awards: Book Excellence Awards Finalist and Silver award for eLit. Book Awards. Another recent book of hers, A Time to Grow Up: A Daughter's Grief Memoir has won many awards including being a 2018 Book Excellence Awards Finalist in the Memoir category at the New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards and a 2018 Independent Press Distinguished Favorites Award in the Memoir category. Horner-Miller has also been a past national presenter at the Women Writing the West Conference and is currently the creator of Memoir Workshops for others who want to share their family’s legacies through words. Larada and her husband, Lin, enjoy being nestled in the mountains above Albuquerque, New Mexico, near the village of Tijeras. When not writing books, this passionate, energetic, and enthusiastic woman loves to spend time kicking up her heels at square dancing gatherings, traveling, knitting, and reading. As co-manager of her family’s southeastern Colorado ranch, she enjoys spending time exploring her family’s historic ranch and reminiscing with her brother and his children about their mom, dad, and granddad.

2 thoughts on “The Third Line of Haiku: Choices!”

  1. Thank you Larada. I love all your wisdom and the haikus you’ve shared in our meditation group. The third line is really powerful and I never saw it that way before!

    Reply

Hey, there! I would love to hear from you!

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