
I have started doing haiku on wooden plaques.
These are called 'Mikecu'. This isn't a company name or a brand.
I'm not about to appear on 'Dragon's Den' asking them for a £100,000 investment for a 25% stake.
I couldn't bear Duncan Balletine's interrogation about my profit margins.
'What's your projected net profit for the first year of trading?'
'Uh.......fuck all!'
'Errrrr....right! So you expect me to hand you 100 grand for no return?.....I am oot!'
So, I have begun by doing two for birthdays (one a 21st) and one for a Christening.
And no, it's not the pimping of a Red Poet because I have written haiku for years, just never on wood to be hung up (or used for the fire?).
They can be about almost anything (yes,even daffs and sheep!), but Nature and the seasons do remain primary themes.
I like their brevity : out-tweeting Twitter and their focus ( even after a few pints of Celt).
I have written a few yn Cymraeg, but mostly in English and ,unlike some other exponents, adhere strictly to the 5-7-5.
I believe there's something magical about those syllables, even though they may be more apt in Chinese or Japanese.
Some who have received one have never heard of the haiku form before.
In one case my wife sent a text saying 'Hope you enjoy the haiku' and the recipient was expecting a scarf!
I also like the challenge of writing to commission and trying not to fall into the deadly pit of cliches.
A haiku is not
a scarf, it's a paper snake ;
so wear the shed skin.