EarthRise Rolling Haiku Collaboration

Earthrise Rolling Haiku Collaboration 2020

 

Welcome to the world’s largest annual collaborative poem. The United Nations has designated 2020 as the Year of the Nurse. This is pure kismet on their part — they couldn’t possibly have known what a central part nurses would be playing in all our lives at the present moment. Our seed poem honors them, as well as one of the key figures in the history of English-language haiku, William J. Higginson. Please add your poem(s) in the Reply Box below, ideally at dawn at your location, but any time that you are able. The timeline for this begins at 12:01 A.M. on April 17 on the International Date Line (which is why it seems to have started the day before, for many of us). Your poem(s) may respond to the “seed” poem:

no visitors today
I call the nurse again
[This is a link from “Lunar New Year,” a renku by William J. Higginson, Elizabeth Searle Lamb, and Penny Harter, published in Elizabeth Searle Lamb’s Across the Windharp (1999).]

or to any of the posted poems, and you can even start a new thread. You may participate as often as you like. All we ask is that you respond to the theme at hand.

Enjoy!

This Post Has 330 Comments

  1. (Thanks for keeping the thread rolling)

    *
    *
    (more a micro-poem than a haiku):
    *
    I visit my niece, the nurse,
    at her home;
    she blesses me farewell
    with a care packet
    of masks & hand sanitizer

    *
    *

    (one for the nurturing of motherhood – from maternity to eternity):
    *
    I find her
    expecting me There too
    in Our Father’s nursery

    *
    *

    Michael (MV) 😎

  2. Thanks, Bona,
    for sharing your haiku dedicated to your niece the nurse on April 16th 9:18 A.M..

    I relate to the kinship:

    my sister’s daughter
    my niece
    (my parent’s granddaughter)
    a dedicated critical care & ER nurse
    and respected 1st responder

    😎

    Michael (MV)

  3. This is for my daughter
    SAMANTHA working on one of the busy Front Lines of this Pandemic in Colorado….

    nurse doctor anesthetist
    intubating lives
    daughters oath when pager calls

    Thank You 🙏. We Love You…
    So Proud of YOU

  12. A big thank you to Jim and the Haiku Foundation for this chance for all of us to get together in tribute to our wonderful nursing staff, it’s an honour to be a part of it. Take care all, I’ve loved reading through each post…stay safe
    .
    our balance
    of life and death …
    spring equinox
    .
    Brendon Kent (Diary of a Virus 2020)

  20. The Angels of Lost Lists Part Zero: No One Is A List
    .
    1. love
    2. food
    3. hope
    .
    19. the covid number
    20. sky for rent
    .
    I’ve built a mythical barn to gather all of us still left alive. The glittering of its bonfire makes me think of difficult acronyms for home.
    .
    HOME: History Of Middle-Earth
    HOME: Homeowner Obligation Made Explicit
    HOME: Homeworkers Organized for More Employment
    HOME: Hourly Ownership of Models for Earth’s (Destruction)
    Warmth is fleeting, due to the many gaps in the memories of before.
    .
    .
    it’s a spider night
    we huddle under stars
    surveilling us
    .
    Alan Summers
    Weird Laburnum (April 2020)

  27. nurses’ scarred faces
    in intensive care
    the shape of their mask
    .
    Brendon Kent April 2020 (Diary of a Virus)
    *Pictures are released showing intensive care doctors and nurses after relentless shifts removing their masks…they look shattered and have extremely sore faces after having their masks on for such long periods.

  28. wild pansies …
    the nursing staffs’
    war-torn faces
    .
    Brendon Kent April 2020 (Diary of a Virus)
    *news reports on the immense pressure our nursing staff are under but also the nursing staff who haven’t made it through…

  29. worn on the chest
    of whoever it is
    the nurse’s face
    .
    Brendon Kent April 2020 (Diary of a Virus)
    *Doctors and nurses are wearing photos of themselves on the front of their suits to make them seem less frightening

  30. PPE shortage …
    the nurse with the patient
    holds her breath
    .
    Brendon Kent April 2020 (Diary of a Virus)
    *this regrettably is a true story

  32. breaking down
    on the hospital steps
    a nurse’s intentions
    .
    Brendon Kent April 2020 (Diary of a Virus)
    *At great risk to themselves, the frontline hospital staff are fighting a never ending battle 24/7…their resolve tested daily and at great cost.
    Lack of PPE and equipment means the nurses and doctors often work with little protection…they are the heroes.

  36. hailstones–
    her soft glance
    on my wound

    *****
    falling leaf–
    the nurse replaces
    vase water

    *****
    milky moon her whiteness over the tired eyes

    *****
    nursing home greeting with the first smile

    *****

      1. Thank you. I think she was six months pregnant, possibly entering her seventh month. The health workers are running out of protective gear right now, as the government avoided many opportunities to purchase more over the last several weeks.
        .
        I feel we need a Front Line Memorial, in every country, for those who have fallen. And that it includes all those who work in hospitals (porters, cleaners, kitchen, admin, nurses, doctors, surgeons etc…), as well as teachers, care home staff, as well as all the underpaid under appreciated people who clean our streets or protect them in other ways.
        .
        I also feel there should be a World Memorial to recognise everyone regardless of race etc… so that we pay homage to all of them regardless of nationality, creed, religion, etc…

        1. I think you need to make this a reality Alan. You start the petition and I’ll be first in the queue to sign it.
          I can’t get over our woeful HS, if he can think it right to contemplate a badge when more serious issues were afoot, he certainly does not deserve such high office.

          1. Hi Rob,
            .
            Although Mary is British (I don’t want to put her in the past tense), and I have signed various petitions, there is this one. All those non-British nurses who are putting their lives on the line for us, and will suffer uncertainty about the whole EU and UK situation, is disturbingly low on signatures:
            https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/305129
            .
            But I am perplexed and disgusted about the government’s attitude towards nurses, that they should only be thanks, unprotected and underpaid, and have some sort of Badge if they survive.
            .
            I don’t like this modern post-European Britain attitude at all.
            .
            I just found the fund! I’ll make a donation, it can be just symbolic, but I have to do something:
            https://www.gofundme.com/f/our-beloved-marymo-yesu-maame
            .
            Thanks Rob! And hope to ‘see’ you soon!

  42. urology
    the nurse asks
    if I’m married

    hospital lounge
    on the radio
    nothing else matters

    1. Hi Radhamani
      This verse reminds me of the poem by Dylan Thomas (1914-53)
      .
      ‘Do not go gentle into that good night’
      .
      Keep well.

  45. sequestered in a hotel
    a tired nurse messages
    her own feet

    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    1. Nice Carol!
      .
      lip service…
      each nurse knows
      the power of words
      .
      Robert Kingston
      Chelmsford
      U.K

  48. night shift
    her crisp packet
    carries the ward
    .
    corridor painting…
    the nurse from the ward
    asks if We’d like tea
    .
    Seaman’s hospital
    blacked out windows
    in the waiting hall

    Robert Kingston
    Chelmsford
    U.K

  51. how the nurse on the phone
    empowers me—
    my first child’s seizure
    .

    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

  54. nurseline
    she keeps talking with me
    ’til my nosebleed stops
    .

    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    2. everything feels safe
      she places a face mask
      on her nurse doll

      .
      wendy c. bialek
      az, usa

    3. little thought
      for what the nurse carries
      home…
      .
      Robert Kingston
      Chelmsford
      U.K

  58. My daughter, the nurse Her hands guided by God’s grace Connecting with souls.

        1. grabbing
          daylight stars
          she tells us
          it’s normal
          .
          Robert Kingston
          Chelmsford
          U.K

  69. perched on the loo
    while a nurse holds my drip:
    my inner kid in stitches
    .
    (Pulse, 13th September 2019)

  79. last breath . . .
    a nurse turns mother
    toward the light
    .
    pandemic
    the beak she wears
    on her mask
    .
    empty womb . . .
    a nightingale comforts me
    through the night
    .
    Debbie Strange (Canada)
    .
    I hope you are all safe and well as we write our way through this darkness. Shine on!

    1. Oh that first one, Debbie…
      .
      Okay in our household so far, but I just saw an ambulance take a neighbour away. Although I don’t know which house it was, I’m praying they will recover. 🙁
      .
      Stay safe.
      .
      marion

      1. Thanks so much, Marion. We are safe here, and people are, for the most part, obeying the social distancing rules.
        .
        Well wishes to you and yours, Debbie 💔

  80. simple kindness
    how the nurse helps her
    to walk again
    .
    adjusting pillows
    before the night spreads
    his final round
    .
    great aunt Faye
    the bell in her voice
    still ringing
    .
    flowering tulips
    retelling the story
    how she survived
    .
    back from the shelter
    she names her new cat
    after the nurse
    .
    deep gratitude
    when nothing is expected
    rainbow windows
    .
    Xenia Tran

    1. Ah, you made it here, Carol!
      .
      A very pertinent question indeed.
      .
      Stay well.
      .
      marion

      1. Only just, Marion.
        .
        I’ve often wondered. These people who care for us with such dedication, it was tough before…
        Everything I do, is with more thought not to become a burden. Yesterday was a chainsaw and sledge hammer day…
        .
        You too stay safe and well.

  82. fever dreams
    on the nurse’s face
    tears
    …
    touch
    of a butterfly wing
    her cool hand
    …
    iron worker
    he apologizes again
    for being sick
    …
    home at last
    don’t kiss mommy
    nurse whispers
    …
    in scrubs and masks the new caped defenders
    …
    ……………….Peggy Hale Bilbro
    ……………….Alabama, USA

    1. Based on a post this morning by my husband’s first cousin. It seems her daughter has only received PPE now.

      1. Edit
        .
        lady of the lamp
        how her heart weeps
        from the inside
        .
        Robert Kingston
        Chelmsford
        U.K

  96. faceless women
    morning and evening
    on rubber soles

    ***

    night without silence …
    the blinding light
    in the infirmary

    ***

    tired
    practically bare hands
    nurse

  101. SEED POEM
    -haiku sequence-
    Motto:
    where culture
    begins – a rustic
    rice – planting song
    Matsuo BASHO

    sowing words
    to the appropriate whey
    a book comes to light

    sowing rice
    the young farmer hums
    an ancient song

    sowing corn
    behind the farmer
    hungry crows

    green wheat field
    in the purple twilight
    waving slowly

    the blue eyes
    of the wheat field;
    two chicories

    end of the field –
    a new lit way for
    the harvest sanctified

    bringing offer
    under the icon of Virgin Mary
    a crown of wheat ears

    drinking together
    a cup of sake in the honor
    of new harvest

    1. How true your words, Frank.
      This needs printing off ‘large’ and hung in a convenient place for all to see, maybe the message will hit home, its still going on, and lock-ins.

  105. the dead of night
    the nurse rests her cheek
    on the palm of hand
    *
    Marta Chocilowska, Poland

  110. took me years to stop saying
    my brother-in-law
    is a male nurse

    Sari Grandstaff
    Saugerties, NY, USA
    @haikutopia

  113. school nurse’s office
    student with low-grade fever
    waits for test results
    Sari Grandstaff
    Saugerties, NY
    @haikutopia

  115. the scuba divers
    with masks and oxygen tanks
    swim with the nurse sharks

    Sari Grandstaff
    Saugerties, NY
    @haikutopia

  124. end of night shift ~
    all nurses send a selfie
    to their loved ones…

    he cries for prayers ~
    he sleeps for 24 hours
    after 5 weeks’ shift…

    The 95 year’ old lady
    howls at the caring nurse ~
    no visits allowed

  125. end of night shift ~
    all nurses send a selfie
    to their loved ones…

    he cries for prayers ~
    he sleeps for 24 hours
    after 5 weeks’ shift…

    The 95 year’ old lady
    howls at the caring nurse ~
    no visits allowed

    1. I’ve had this in my mind all morning. Just could not nail one of my lines.
      Well done!

    1. Indeed! Marietta.
      Nicely crafted.
      Shows how green some of these politicians are.

  143. park ave…..
    strong nurses bring patients
    to refrigerator trucks

    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

  144. shooting star —
    the palliative care nurse
    fetches pethidine
    .
    — Marietta McGregor, publ. Cattails Senryu Section, September 2015

  145. fingers of god
    my emergency nurse
    has monk’s ears
    .
    — Marietta McGregor, publ. Blithe Spirit, August 2018

  146. nursing home—
    nurses are family
    and funeral directors
    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    *

  148. .
    .

    jaundice moon
    the nurse’s comforting words
    my first night

    .
    .
    .

    PPE shortages
    handwashing
    with gloves on

    .
    .
    .

    bruised tissue
    “you’ve hands of an angel,” she says
    as I inject
    .
    .
    .
    Claire Vogel Camargo, RN

  150. unable to distance
    how nurses become
    part of the curve

    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    *
    even when it’s off
    the nurse’s mask
    still feels on

    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    .

    in the midst of covid-19 —
    nurses become
    funeral directors
    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

  151. Sorry, Posted earlier without a gap between haiku.
    .
    .
    midnight shift–
    a nurse pauses to
    spread blanket over a patient
    .
    .
    daisy smile–
    a nurse’s stethoscope listening
    to a child’s heartbeat
    .
    .

    a visit from
    my nurse blotting
    the blue of hay fever
    .
    .

    consultation–
    a nurse’s sweet voice healing
    my doubts

    .
    .
    Neelam Dadhwal,
    India

  152. midnight shift–
    a nurse pauses to
    spread blanket over a patient

    daisy smile–
    a nurse’s stethoscope listening
    to a child’s heartbeat

    a visit from
    my nurse blotting
    the blue of hay fever

    consultation–
    a nurse’s sweet voice healing
    my doubts

  153. nurse’s day off
    surging new face masks
    from fat quarters
    .
    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

    2. typo corrected:

      nurse’s day off
      serging new face masks
      from fat quarters
      .
      wendy c. bialek
      az, usa

  157. mid-evening
    the nurse’s re-stapled mask
    leaves an opened cut
    .

    wendy c. bialek
    az, usa

  160. the nurse enters
    with a bright smile
    lavander blooms
    .
    Billy Antonio
    Laoac, Philippines

    1. correction
      .
      the nurse enters
      with a bright smile
      lavender blooms
      .
      Billy Antonio
      Laoac, Philippines

  165. gently cleaning her crevices
    rolling her body
    as if still breathing
    *
    venting in the lunch room
    air blue with
    humanity
    *
    I hold her hand
    that squeezes mine
    with a smile
    *
    taught never to run
    it alarms the other
    residents
    *
    handover
    from the harried
    to the fresh and clean

  167. discharge day
    half empty at the nurse station
    a box of milk tray
    .
    admissions day
    how time changes
    the nurses uniform
    .
    remembering when
    slap and tickle was part
    of a nurses day
    .
    first shift
    the rattle of bed pans
    in the sluice room

        1. endoscopy-
          in a cauldron of eyes
          he swallows his pride
          .
          blood test
          a new shade of pale
          in the braggarts face

          1. twilight owls
            watch over
            malignant pigs
            .
            through tall buildings
            clapping for angels
            in human form
            .
            a Stetson
            for the secretary
            spouting PPE lies
            .
            clapping
            for Our NHS
            rounds on green ears
            .
            cowboys have fun
            but Indians they make
            better doctors
            .
            when the chips are down
            it takes a nurse
            to will you round again
            .
            Robert kingston
            Chelmsford
            United Kingdom

  168. long hours
    short on sleep
    another body

    *

    each recovery
    ephemeral Joy
    as many die

    *

    bruised face
    giving
    kind eyes

  171. hospital doors
    the comings and goings
    of a winters day
    .
    post op
    the warmth
    in the nurse’s hand
    .
    post op
    a warm smile
    from the ward cleaner
    .

  179. *
    the elderly
    appreciate her smile and
    her warm touch
    *

    It is 6 am here in Aotearoa!

  180. .
    what are the odds
    a joke with the nurse
    that I might die
    .
    Alan Summers
    .
    note: I had a procedure that had 1 in 200 chance that I could die, so I asked if I was number 199.
    Nurses have a terrific sense of humour!

      1. It was funny as the ambulance crew kept giving me nitro, and a doctor stopped the emergency room staff from doing likewise as it would have killed me. So I just had to pull the nurse’s leg and check what number I was, after all she might have just seen 199 people! 🙂

  186. Prayers for All !!!
    **************
    one in
    every other family
    and thankful for them
    *********************
    pacing themselves
    without any sleep
    health professionals
    ********************
    dawn
    acknowledging
    the shift change
    ***************

  187. casualty dept
    I ask the nurse
    wheres your mask
    .
    where angels dare
    a ward full of nurses
    without PPE
    .

  196. .
    Eleven is an Even Number: The Covid Chronicles
    .
    different windows
    the movement of the sun
    around confinement
    .
    house arrest
    the plague runner
    enters our breath
    .
    friendly cat
    its owners become
    the front line
    .
    street applause
    we recognise our heroes
    are nurses under fire
    .
    birthday cards
    in their protective casing
    the evening shudders
    .
    blinkered sun
    two metres translated
    in wrong numbers
    .
    nightzoning
    streetlights pick out
    the sputum
    .
    Easter Quarantine
    the daylight sparkles across
    yet another nail
    .
    Easter Sunday
    I fill another hollow
    with antiseptic
    .
    Easter Internment
    moonlight carries a warning
    across my backyard
    .
    new day rising—
    I spread the butter
    and talk to my egg
    .
    Alan Summers
    weird laburnum ed. Michael O’Brien (Easter Monday, April 2020)

      1. Gosh, it wasn’t nice on the day! I think plague runners (joggers) should wear masks or spit masks, and the same for the speed cyclists.
        .
        I’ve never envied nurses especially on Friday and Saturday nights after the boozers shut, but now they have to deal with so much more!

        1. ‘plague runners’
          I see this every day, and cringe.
          .
          A smashing collection of verses, but this one stands out, for me. Great words, and thanks for posting it.

          1. Thanks Carol! 🙂
            .
            Sadly we are denied the 3 minute walk to the meadow behind us as it’s too dangerous due to joggers and cyclists not wearing masks, and other things.
            .
            We just go out once a week, but at least we do have a lovely little house with a small but private walk around. But so busy we need to stay where there’s wifi!
            .
            I still cannot believe how much the NHS staff (all of them) are sacrificing for us in the UK without support from the government. It took 99 year old military veteran Captain Tom Moore to raise, £20,000,000 (TWENTY MILLION Pounds Sterling) by walking around his ‘drive’. I’d rather have him head up the UK government anyway!
            .

          2. I think that is awful you can’t safely walk so close to your home because of other’s selfishness, just as well you are both careful people and work from home.
            .
            Yes, these dedicated people risk their own lives, and still some members of the public are breaking the guidelines every day. So very sad.

            .
            Captain Tom, he certainly sorted the men from the boys, I sincerely hope the government will take his masterful lead, some are born leaders, he is one of them, he has admiration and respect from all over the world which is more than the governments have. Well done, Sir.
            The logistics of getting this all sorted is massive but this is a rod they have made for their own backs by not closing everything down sooner.
            .
            Take care you two.

          3. Hi Carol! 🙂
            .
            Again we are losing some of our finest generation, more than 80 NHS workers are dead, though lack of backbone and competence from a bunch of politicians who don’t know how to do, but can certainly say a lot, mostly double-talk!
            .
            Captain Tom Moore did an amazing job, over twenty-three million pounds sterling!
            🙂
            .
            Just one man, and family, achieving so much, a real human on all levels, finally being honoured all over again for his service to the country. By country I mean humans, not shareholders, politicians’ multiple homes, corporate billionaires, Richard Branson etc…
            .
            It takes a 99 year old person to do the job right, incredible, and wonderful! 🙂
            .
            Yes, the current bunch of weird just-talk politicos reduced our vital services in all areas, and where has the money gone? There does need to be a giant memorial wall of all those keyworkers in all walks of life, and in Parliament Square, or nearby, to show those who do, and those who just continue to talk.

      1. Thanks!
        She’s now handling covid + patients.
        And yes, she activates her CALM face in front of her patients each day.

        1. Thanks, Bona,
          for sharing your 2020 haiku

          I relate to the kinship:

          my sister’s daughter
          my niece
          (my parent’s granddaughter)
          the dedicated critical care & ER nurse
          and respected 1st responder

          😎

          Michael (MV)

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