The ARHAIKU Series: Pain in Poetry

Welcome to the Arhaiku ("Aray ko") Series: Pain in Poetry.

In the Filipino language, 'aray ko' expresses our pain. Its English equivalent is 'ouch'. One dawn, as I laid in bed waiting for my alarm clock to go off, I had a sudden burst of creative silliness. And here is the result: writing haikus to share painful experiences. A haiku is a Japanese poem that has three lines. Each line has a designated number of syllables: 5-7-5. It is usually written in present tense to describe the moment. It is also traditionally about nature. I diverge from the last two standards (at times), or at least I try my best to follow the present tense standard. And the nature part...well, we could say that pain is natural, and my body is part of nature. So I suppose I'm not that off!

I hope you enjoy reading--maybe 'enjoy' is not the right word. Because then you'd be sadistic! But I guess what I mean to say is: I hope the few seconds you take to read the poem are not wasted seconds.

Pain in Poetry: Arhaiku 1
Bowlful of water
boiled perfectly to spill. Burn
my young lap and legs.
Pain: February 2009
Poetry: written on 12/09/09

Pain in Poetry: Arhaiku 2
Hunger blinds reason
but does not dull the knife so
finger gushes red
Pain: October 2008
Poetry: written on 12/11/09

Pain in Poetry: Arhaiku 3
Dancing to The Cure
brings heat. Shirt comes off, finger
pulls, tears right ripple
Pain: December 2009
Poetry: written on 12/11/09