2020 Selections

Hexapod Haiku Laureates – 12 and under

We present here the three 2020 Hexapod Haiku Laureates (ages 12 and under), listed in no particular order:

warm rays join the horizon
flecks of illuminating creatures
weave through the tall grass

—William Liu, Centre Co. PA

The sun sets, and the fireflies emerge. This poem paints a picture without ever stating what insect we're seeing. Maybe they're not even fireflies but rather some other surprising insect—something long, thin, and capable of weaving itself in grass. A larva? We only capture pieces of these insects, flecks, with our eyes. Maybe the sun is rising, warming the air as it ascends. The fireflies scramble to find shelter before being cooked by the heat of the day. This poem uses concrete language poetically and is more haiku-like than all the other entries. With every reading we find a novel interpretation, a new meaning.

Grasshopper
away,
Blur
of living energy,
A
small green rocket

—Lily Stone, Centre Co. PA

The spacing in the poem effectively captures the motion of the grasshopper—an explosion of energy, in a transient moment. Our clear view of the insect is fleeting, lasting just long enough to identify it. Then suddenly … only a blur. The haiku highlights the jumping power of Orthoptera, a trait that is familiar but perhaps celebrated less than their ability to sing. We reflect on how an organism so small and fragile can transform into something powerful, inspiring, and filled with energy as a rocket taking off from Earth.

Inching along the
Snail is exhausted but must
Go on just a foot

—Stella Loverich, Centre Co. PA

Snails and hexapods are separated by more than 600 million years of evolution. To many people, though, snails and hexapods occupy the same cultural space, as relatively small invertebrates we often see on land, eating our garden veggies. The poem likewise resonated with the judges, who were drawn in by the word play (inching along, just a foot) and the emotion. We feel this gastropod's exhaustion, as it struggles to complete its journey—only a short distance, but oh … so … slowly.

Congratulations to our 2020 Hexapod Haiku Laureates in the Ages 12 and Under category!

Hexapod Haiku – Honorable Mention, ages 12 and under

We had so many wonderful submissions that the judges had a hard time selecting only three laureates. The following haiku, which were all close contenders for top honors this year, deserve honorable mention in the 12 and under category. Congratulations! Thanks for sharing your work with us, and we hope to see your work again next year!

Mr. Roach please approach
Your antennas amuse me
I want to meet you.

—Jillian Vanderhoof, Centre Co. PA

Lady bugs are awesome
They are bright red with black spots
They lay eggs on leaves

—Fiona Kennedy, Centre Co. PA

Flitting here and there
And everywhere seeing color
The butterfly's aster

—Stella Loverich, Centre Co. PA

Lover of the light
A less graceful butterfly
Better known as moths.

-Anne Yingling, Centre Co. PA

The spider scurries
scared of being crushed but still
I am scared of it

-Ainsley Martin, Centre Co. PA

Hexapod Haiku Laureates – 13 and older

We present here the three 2020 Hexapod Haiku Laureates (ages 13 and over), listed in no particular order:

briefly
a butterfly
grasshopper

— Brad Bennett, Arlington, MA

This is such an efficient poem. In only four words this poet paints a complex picture, filled with emotion. Maybe the grasshopper aspires to be a butterfly but can't sustain the look for more than a few seconds? Maybe the observer is excited to see a butterfly but is then disappointed to discover it's just a grasshopper. The poem highlights an interesting biological phenomenon – the startle defense. A predator sees an explosion of color, often accompanied by clicking sounds, and is startled. By the time the predator recovers from the startle the grasshopper is back in camouflage mode (after hitting the ground with a smack), blending in with the gravel on the dirt road. As one of our judges remarked, "… a classic haiku in that it illustrates a fundamental characteristic of the medium, that of the transiency of life. I also take inspiration from it, while imagining I can be anything I wish."

horsefly
a waving fisherman
in a row boat

— Peter Caiello, Syracuse, NY

"Horsefly" embodies karumi, or light humor, in haiku, and it's an insect that rarely gets the spotlight in poetry. There is a lovely element of ambiguity in this poem. For observers not in on the joke, the fisherman could be waving for any number of reasons. Is he in trouble? Does he know me? Oh, there must be a horse fly! For anyone who has been stalked by a horse fly, it is a maddening and worrisome experience. Waving is a common defense and thus something many people can relate to! In this haiku we see the power of insects to influence and affect our behavior. There's also something fun about imagining yourself as the observer here, perhaps snickering a bit as you see someone else being harassed by the fly, especially in such a precarious setting as a row boat on the water. Don't wave too hard, my friend!

cumulonimbus
the towering cloud
of gnats

—Jeff Hoagland, Hopewell, NJ

We loved the echo or zoom effect of this haiku, from towering to tiny, from dangerous and foreboding to fragile and innocent. The hinge line, "the towering cloud", transitions our focus from the meteorological to the entomological. One can imagine a hot summer day, with growing thunderstorms in the distance; the observer fixates instead on the gnats' mating swarm in the foreground. Lost in the dawning realization that this cloud of flies is much larger than initially thought—a cumulonimbus itself—we imagine the observer patiently observing their behavior, perhaps contemplating the origin and evolution of halteres, while ignoring the growing threat in the distance.

Congratulations to our 2020 Hexapod Haiku Laureates in the Ages 13 and Older category!

Hexapod Haiku – Honorable Mention, ages 13 and older

We had so many wonderful submissions that the judges had a hard time selecting only three laureates. The following haiku, which were all close contenders for top honors this year, deserve honorable mention in the 13 and older category. Congratulations! Thanks for sharing your work with us!

endless motion
of springtime
flies

— Faith Kingsley

midsummer
an inchworm sways
on a thread

— Brad Bennett

A wrestling match
Between two carpenter bees
Is hilarious

— Kirsten Pearsons

fireflies:
only blinking yellow lights
on the country road

— Bushrod McDonald

Staying at home:
Both the housefly
and my palm
press against the window pane.

— Emily Dorff