Spiritual Dragonflies
A haiku is a short poem that originated in Japan during the 17th century. Matsuo Basho was the founder of Haiku. A haiku consists of 17 syllables. A syllable as the smallest segment of speech which is what all of our words and sentences are built upon (Chu 217). There are three lines in a haiku. The first line in a haiku consists of 5 syllables, the second line consists of 7 syllables and the last line consists of 5 again.
Haiku tends to focus on nature. Historically, haiku included words or phrases to reference a season. It allows poets to incorporate the earth’s rituals and cycles into their work. I also think it brings some sort of emotion when poets reference a season. An example would be in the haiku inspired poem by Robert Frost, “Nothing Gold Can Stay.” At first, Frost describes nature as “gold.” I interpret “gold” as something bright, shiny and valuable. He ends the poem by saying, “Nothing gold can stay” (Frost 218). This suggests that there is a sense of loss or change. Nature and seasons can easily be connected to an emotion. For example, Winter and Fall can signify change, cold, dark, and sadness.
Although it did not address the seasons directly, Sonia Sanchez’s haiku, “My Bones Hang To,” gives a sense of growth and change. The poet states, “My bones hang to / gether like pinched dragonflies” (Sanchez 222). When I hear the word “bones” and “dragonflies” it brings a sense of weakness. Both being quite delicate objects. Dragonflies in the spiritual context means change or transformation will occur. In the following line, the poet states, “Shake loose my skin” (Sanchez 222). When I hear this line, I think of someone aging and their skin becoming loose and wrinkled. All of these thoughts brought me to believe that the interpretation of this poem is based on growing old and aging. The narrator is realizing and becoming self aware that their body is transforming and changing with age. Often, as people age, they begin to lack neuroplasticity and their cognitive abilities. When the narrator states, “my bones hang together to / gether link pinched dragonflies” this could be interpreted as the declining of their cognitive abilities (Sanchez 222). Almost as if they know what they want to say but they’re still having trouble putting the pieces together to form the specific line.
Chu, Jean Hyung Yul. “Haiku” An Exaltation of Forms: Contemporary Poets Celebrate the Diversity of Their Art, Edited by Anne Finch and Kathrine Varnes, U. of Michigan Press, 2002, pp. 217–222.
