NOVEMBER 2015
Haiku, You-ku, We all ku for Haiku!Did you know that Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) invented the Haiku?
Join us throughout the month of November 2015 for "This Is My Haiku To The World," a look at the haikus by the master himself, Emmett Lee Dickinson. |
November 1: Haiku = Bowling
Did you know that "haiku" is the Japanese word for bowling?
During one of his tours of Japan, Emmett Lee Dickinson was bowling, and he developed the idea for a short poem of 17 syllables after he bowled a 7-10 split: seven syllables between two lines of five syllables (or "10 split").
He called this new form of poetry a "haiku," the Japanese word for "bowling."
During one of his tours of Japan, Emmett Lee Dickinson was bowling, and he developed the idea for a short poem of 17 syllables after he bowled a 7-10 split: seven syllables between two lines of five syllables (or "10 split").
He called this new form of poetry a "haiku," the Japanese word for "bowling."
Pictured at the left: Now called "Dickinson Bowling" (pronounced "Dickinson Haiku"), the bowling alley where Emmett Lee Dickinson invented the haiku is a landmark in Japan
Pictured at the right: The bottom line of the Dickinson Bowling (Haiku) Center postcard reads "Where Emmett Lee Dickinson invented the poem known as haiku." |
FUN FACTS: Emmett Lee Dickinson also invented a five-line love poem called a "Volley" patterned after the scoring conventions for tennis. The first line would always begin with the single word "Love." The second line would contain 15 syllables, followed by a line with 30 syllables, and the final line would have 40 syllables. Unlike the haiku, Dickinson's "Volley Poem" never caught on.
November 2: The Oldest Known Haiku
After Emmett Lee Dickinson had the brainstorm for the poetic form known as the haiku, he wrote to several friends -- including Henry David Thoreau -- and to his third cousins, Austin, Lavinia and Emily Dickinson. The oldest known surviving haiku (the first haiku ever written?) is on a postcard Dickinson sent from Japan to his third cousins in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Emily Dickinson was so inspired by her third cousin's work, that she went bowling at Amherst Lanes (now Emily Dickinson Lanes). She bowled several games, and then sat and wrote "This is my letter to the World."
By Emily Dickinson:
This is my letter to the World That never wrote to Me – The simple News that Nature told – With tender Majesty Her Message is committed To Hands I cannot see – For love of Her – Sweet – countrymen – Judge tenderly – of Me Pictured at the right, top: Emily Dickinson Lanes in Amherst, Massachusetts (formerly Amherst Lanes). Upon reading Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku entitled "This is my Haiku," Emily Dickinson rushed to Amherst Lanes where she bowled a 187 average for a series of three games. She then went into the Writers' Lounge where she penned "This is my letter to the World." The bowling alley also has a Recitation Room and an Open Mic Lounge. Pictured at the right bottom: "Emily Dickinson Lanes for Ladies" was for women only into the early 1970s. It did not permit male bowlers until 1974. |
FUN FACTS: Many poets have bowled and composed poetry at Emily Dickinson Lanes in Amherst. Maya Angelou wrote "On the Pulse of Morning" there after bowling a perfect game. Rita Dove wrote "Testimonial" there after bowling her personal best, a game of 227. Nikki Giovanni, Sandra Cisneros, Susan Snively, and many others have reported that they have written major poems after bowling games at the historic bowling alley.
November 3: Dickinson's Alma Mater
After he returned from Japan, Emmett Lee Dickinson visited his alma mater, the Samuel Green Academy, where he visited some of his favorite teachers, May Tippet, Onlee Tulle, Irma Tallity. and Cornice N. d'Ground. Shortly afterward, he wrote the haiku below:
Time for recess yet? Who's that knocking at my door? Whose carriage is that? |
By Emily Dickinson:
Because I could not stop for Death – He kindly stopped for me– The Carriage held but just Ourselves– And Immortality. We slowly drove – He knew no haste, And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility – We passed the School, where Children strove At recess – in the ring – We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain – We passed the Setting Sun – Or rather – He passed Us – The Dews drew quivering and chill – For only Gossamer, my Gown – My Tippet – only Tulle – We paused before a House that seemed A Swelling of the Ground – The Roof was scarcely visible – The Cornice – in the Ground – Since then – 'tis centuries – and yet Feels shorter than the Day I first surmised the Horses' Heads Were toward Eternity – |
The haiku above was one of the inspirations for Dickinson's third cousin Emily's poem "Because I could not stop for Death" (at the left). Dickinson was inspired to write his haiku after visiting his childhood school and meeting with some of his favorite teachers -- May Tippet, Onlee Tulle, Irma Tallity, and Cornice N. d'Ground.
Below: The faculty at the Samuel Green Academy |
November 4: Bite Me
In the mid-1800s, the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal (now the New England Journal of Medicine) published Emmett Lee Dickinson's ground-breaking research, "Evolutionary Dynamics of Immune-Related Genes and Pathways as related to the Attractiveness of Humans to Disease-Vector Mosquitoes."
"Mosquitoes typically bite sexy people," wrote Dickinson, "and they tend to eat me alive." When he heard that his good friend Henry David Thoreau had made a decision to wander off into the woods, Dickinson gave him a copy of his research along with some mosquito repellent he invented. At the top of the journal, Dickinson wrote his friend a haiku about the common house fly (the follow-up subject to his revolutionary study on mosquitoes). The message/haiku reads as follows: Pictured above right: Henry David Thoreau, who credited his friend Emmett Lee Dickinson with saving him from ceaseless attacks by mosquitoes and flies during his time in the woods.
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By Emily Dickinson:
I heard a Fly buzz – when I died – The Stillness in the Room Was like the Stillness in the Air – Between the Heaves of Storm – The Eyes around – had wrung them dry – And Breaths were gathering firm For that last Onset – when the King Be witnessed – in the Room – I willed my Keepsakes – Signed away What portion of me be Assignable – and then it was There interposed a Fly – |
At the left: Emily Dickinson said that Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku entitle "Where is that damn fly" was one of her inspirations for her poem "I heard a Fly buzz -- when I died." Pictured at the right: Dickinson's SKEETER SCATTER, insect repellent invented by Emmett Lee Dickinson. Henry David Thoreau credited Dickinson's SKEETER SCATTER with saving him during his time in the woods. "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately," wrote Thoreau, "but it was Dickinson's Skeeter Scatter that allowed me to live at all." |
FUN FACTS: For a complete look at the medicines, salves and ointments invented by Emmett Lee Dickinson, click HERE.
November 5: Boldly Written
William Shatner was the first -- and possibly the only -- person to record an album of haiku recitations. On his best-selling album "I Will Boldly Go," Shatner recorded over 200 of Emmett Lee Dickinson's haikus. The liner notes for the album described the ambitious undertaking as follows: I will boldly go
Where no man has gone before: A Haiku Album Pictured at the left: William Shatner's ground-breaking album, "I Will Boldly Go," which won thirteen Grammy awards.
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Below on the left: On his album "I Will Boldly Go," William Shatner read two haikus by Emmett Lee Dickinson which are known inspirations for Dickinson's third cousin Emily's poem, "Success is counted sweetest." Below on the right: Emily Dickinson's poem.
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Definition of "Success is counted sweetest": Don't wear a red shirt. Would be nice to win The lottery. Guess I need To buy a ticket. |
By Emily Dickinson:
Success is counted sweetest By those who ne'er succeed. To comprehend a nectar Requires sorest need. Not one of all the purple host Who took the flag to-day Can tell the definition, So clear, of victory, As he, defeated, dying, On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Break, agonized and clear. |
FUN FACT: Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, attended the Emmett Lee Dickinson School for Boys in Houston, TX, and was a great aficionado or Dickinson. Roddenberry always made it known that it was the poetry of Emmett Lee Dickinson (including the haiku above on the left entitled "Definition of") that inspired him to create the sci-fi hit. For more information, click HERE (Roddenberry is the third name down).
November 6: Nacho Average Haikus
Typically it was the work of Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) that inspired Emily. However, that was not always the case.
When Emily Dickinson invented Cajun Nachos, Emmett Lee Dickinson had a taste, and he was immediately wowed! He responded with a haiku entitled "May I have some Moor?" That haiku, in turn, inspired Emily to write "I never saw a Moor." Legend has it that when Emily brought the first plate of nachos out from the oven, she refused to share them with anyone -- including her own brother and sister. She then wrote, "Mine – by the Right of the White Election!" Her poem then inspired Emmett Lee Dickinson to write a haiku entitled, "Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine! Pictured at the left: Emily Dickinson's Cajun Nachos |
Below left: Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "May I have some Moor?" Below enter: Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "May I have some Moor?" was found on a scrap piece of paper in Emily Dickinson's kitchen. Below right: Dickinson's haiku inspired third cousin Emily to write "I never saw a Moor."
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
May I have some Moor? I've tasted Cajun Nachos. Heaven does exist. |
By Emily Dickinson:
I never saw a Moor – I never saw the Sea – Yet know I how the Heather looks And what a Billow be. I never spoke with God, Nor visited in Heaven – Yet certain am I of the spot As if the Checks were given – |
Below left: After she baked and then chowed down on her first plate of Cajun Nachos, Emily Dickinson wrote the poem "Mine -- by the Right of the White Election." Below enter: Emily's poem inspired Emmett Lee Dickinson to right a haiku that starts, "Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine!" Below right: Emmett Lee Dickinson's original haiku was written on a scrap of paper.
By Emily Dickinson:
Mine – by the Right of the White Election! Mine – by the Royal Seal! Mine – by the Sign in the Scarlet prison – Bars – cannot conceal! Mine – here – in Vision – and in Veto! Mine – by the Grave's Repeal – Tilted – Confirmed – Delirious Charter! Mine – long as Ages steal! |
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine! So you think you're royalty. Okay -- we get it! |
November 7: I Owe You A Haiku
The concept of the "I.O.U" was developed by Emmett Lee Dickinson; however, it was originally called a "U.O.Me." The very first "U.O.Me" was for $15,000.00 that Emmett Lee Dickinson lent to Edward Dickinson to keep Amherst College solvent.
Pictured at the left: Edward Dickinson, Emily Dickinson's father and the treasurer of Amherst College. Pictured at the right: The first "U.O.Me" signed by both Emmett Lee Dickinson and Edward Dickinson. |
Below: Edward Dickinson could not pay back his original U.O.Me (and others) so he agreed to build and name a dormitory after Emmett Lee Dickinson on the campus of Amherst College. The dormitory, though, was so lavish, that in the early 1900s, the college's president, Alexander Meiklejohn, took it over as the president's residence.
Below left: Emmett Lee Dickinson, weary after all of Edward Dickinson's requests for loans, wrote the haiku, "I am poor once more." Below right: Dickinson's haiku inspired third cousin Emily to write "I never lost as much but twice."
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
I am poor once more. Can you be an angel and Reimburse my store? |
By Emily Dickinson:
I never lost as much but twice, And that was in the sod. Twice have I stood a beggar Before the door of God! Angels – twice descending Reimbursed my store – Burglar! Banker – Father! I am poor once more! Pictured at the left: Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "I am poor once more" was written on the back of another "U.O.Me" for $12,000.00 to Edward Dickinson. |
November 8: Deja Haiku
On the first and second weekends in November, Washerstians celebrate "Deja Vu Days" to commemorate two early meetings of the Dickinson Organization of Poetry Enthusiasts (DOPE). The first meeting took place on November 2, 1871, and the second meeting occurred one week later on November 9th. Since 1959, the city of Washerst has celebrated with a Deja Vu festival! Both of the November 1871 meetings are pictured at the right (click to enlarge). For information on Washerst's Deja Vu Days, click HERE. |
Some people credit Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) with being the first to identify and describe the sensation known as deja vu. The earliest known uses of the words "deja vu" are in Dickinson's two haikus found on the scrap paper pictured at the left.
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November 9: Now and Then
The concept of the passage of time is a common theme in the poems of both Emily Dickinson and Emmett Lee Dickinson (her third cousin, twice removed -- at her request). The envelope pictured at the right was for a letter from Emmett Lee Dickinson in Washerst, PA, to his third cousin Emily in Amherst, MA. On the outside of the envelope, Emmett Lee Dickinson included two haikus about the concept of "now" which inspired his third cousin to write her poem with the first line "Forever – is composed of Nows" (below on the right). |
By Emmett Lee Dickinson: the two haikus on the envelope above on the right read as follows:
I live in the "now." Oops. "Now" just moved. Now is "now." That was then. Here's "now." What is "forever"? "Now is just the tip of "then" Forwards and backwards! |
By Emily Dickinson:
Forever – is composed of Nows – 'Tis not a different time – Except for Infiniteness – And Latitude of Home – From this – experienced Here – Remove the Dates – to These – Let Months dissolve in further Months – And Years – exhale in Years – Without Debate – or Pause – Or Celebrated Days – No different Our Years would be From Anno Domini's – |
November 10: The Power of Three?
Emily Dickinson LOVED her third cousins' haikus, and she couldn't get enough of them. She collected as many of them as she could.
Pictured at the left: Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "On Let's Make A Deal." On the bottom of the paper, Emily Dickinson wrote, "Love this." Emmett Lee's haiku (below on the left) inspired Emily to write "My life closed twice before its close" (below on the right).
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November 11: Formal Verse
Shortly after Emmett Lee Dickinson published his first volume of haikus, Amherst College honored the poet with a dance they called the "Haiku Formal." Pictured at the right: Emily Dickinson's dance card for Amherst College's "Haiku Formal." She penciled in "Emmett" for the first and last dance of the night -- and Emmett Lee wrote a haiku for her at the bottom right of the dance card. Click the image to enlarge. This particular haiku, "Formals are a pain" inspired Emily Dickinson to write her poem "After great pain, a Formal Feeling comes." Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku is below on the left. Emily Dickinson's poem is below on the right. |
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Formals are a pain. Feet -- mechanical -- go round. The Hour of Lead. |
By Emily Dickinson:
After great pain, a formal feeling comes – The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs – The stiff Heart questions was it He, that bore, And Yesterday, or Centuries before? The Feet, mechanical, go round – Of Ground, or Air, or Ought – A Wooden way Regardless grown, A Quartz contentment, like a stone – This is the Hour of Lead – Remembered, if outlived, As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow – First – Chill – then Stupor – then the letting go – Pictured at the left: To this day, "Haiku Formals" are sponsored by Haiku Verification Centers around the world. |
November 12: The National Haiku Home-School Instruction Institute
FUN FACTS:
* Every building at the NHHSII is named for Emmett Lee Dickinson * Oprah Winfrey was once a scholarship winner. * Nikki Giovanni once worked for the NHHSII and evaluated scholarship entries. * Andy Warhol once worked in the kitchen in the NHHSII Training Center. |
At the right: The ad for the NHHSII reads as follows:
You may win one of five $1,495.00 Haiku Scholarships or any one of fifty $10.00 cash prizes. Write a haiku about “Tippy” as described below. Every qualified entrant receives a free professional assessment of his or her haiku. Scholarship winners will receive Fundamentals of Haiku offered by the National Haiku Home-School Instruction Institute, one of America’s leading home study haiku schools. Our objective is to find prospective students who appear to be properly motivated and have an appreciation of and talent for writing haikus. Your entry will be judged in the month received. Our students and professional poets not eligible. Content winners will be notified. Send your entry today. Write your haiku as follows: Line 1: 5 syllables which describe “Tippy.” Line 2: 7 syllables that depict what “Tippy” is doing, accomplishing, thinking, or considering. Line 3: 5 syllables which offer a juxtaposition of the two preceding images or ideas or suggests a parallel between the preceding lines and an inferred concept so that the third line may provide a dignified or unexpected ending, concluding the verse with a heightened sense of closure, so that the complete haiku evokes an element of nature or truth, a moment of beauty, or another poignant experience of humankind. Be sure to include your name, address, age, and credit card number. Non-winners will be charged for and receive the complete $1495.00 three-year course, “Fundamentals of Haiku.” |
November 13: That Frigate Poem
The Dickinson's of Amherst would often host book talks and poetry recitations at their home. However, on one occasion, when Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) was present, "all hell broke loose" -- according to Jane Wald, the Executive Director of the Emily Dickinson Museum.
On this particular night, Emmett Lee Dickinson read his haiku "So you like books" (pictured at the right), and it was an obvious reference to Emily Dickinson's poem "There is no Frigate like a Book." Emily Dickinson was so incensed at her third cousin's obvious snub, that she exploded. Austin Dickinson, Emily's brother sided with Emmett Lee, and Emily's sister Lavinia sided with her -- and soon the entire house erupted into an out-of-control free-for-all. Some scholars speculate that this was one of two times that Emily Dickinson requested that her third cousin be removed, though evidence to support this claim is inconclusive.
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November 14: Bogged Down
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Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "Spacious bog for sale" was also a bit autobiographical. In a terrible business decision he bought what was advertised as "lake front property." It ended up being hundreds of acres of what was known at the time as the Washerst Bog. He later sold the area to a real estate developer for a loss. The developer eventually filled in the bog and the area today is the site of Dickinson Boulevard in historic Washerst. Below left: Washerst Bog, property once owned by Emmett Lee Dickinson. Below right: Dickinson Boulevard in historic Washerst on the site of the former Washerst Bog.
November 15: Deja Haiku
On the first and second weekends in November, Washerstians celebrate "Deja Vu Days" to commemorate two early meetings of the Dickinson Organization of Poetry Enthusiasts (DOPE).
The first meeting took place on November 2, 1871, and the second meeting occurred one week later on November 9th. Since 1959, the city of Washerst has celebrated with a Deja Vu festival! Both of the November 1871 meetings are pictured at the left (click to enlarge). For information on Washerst's Deja Vu Days, click HERE. |
Some people credit Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) with being the first to identify and describe the sensation known as deja vu. The earliest known references to the sensation known as"deja vu" are in Dickinson's two haikus found on the scrap paper pictured at the right.
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November 16: Haiku Certification
Pictured at the left: The Haiku Validation Center in Isherst, Japan (the birthplace of Japan's premier poet Emi Li Dikytinson, a distant relative of Emmett Lee Dickinson and Emily Dickinson). For info, click HERE.
The HVC certifies every haiku ever published -- whether in print or online. Trained and certified Haikuologists validate each and every haiku using a ten-point scale in seven categories including Number of Syllables, Allusion/Reference to Nature, Ambiguity, and Ultra Kawaii (the quality of cuteness in the context of Japanese culture). The Center levies various and hefty penalties and fines on poets who publish unconfirmed, inaccurate and/or imprecise haikus. |
Pictured at the right: Emiko Dikytinson, the third cousin (twice removed) of Japan's premier poet, Emi Li Dikytinson. Unfortunately, Emiko Dikytinson is the top-sanctioned poet by the Haiku Validation Center as she continued to publish imprecise haikus even after she was fined heavily for many and various haiku transgressions. Most often, she published haikus that did not follow the five-seven-five rule of syllables (some did not even come close). Emiko holds the world's record for being noncompliant with haiku conventions and for showing defiance to the ultimatums of the Haiku Validation Center. Ultimately, the publishing industry banned her from writing haikus, and they forbade her from using the word "haiku" in the title of any of her poetry books. |
Pictured at the left: An early edition of haikus by Emiko Dikyntinson. However, after numerous and flagrant haiku transgressions, the Haiku Validation Center and the International Federation of Haikus banned Dikytinson from writing haikus and from using the word "Haiku" in her book titles. Pictured at the right: The title of Emiko Dikytinson's book was later changed to "Three-Lined Poems." Below: Some of the pages from "Three-Lined Poems" by Emiko Dikytinson. |
November 17: A Haiku Scandal
One of the most notorious scandals to rock the world of Poetry was in the late 1800s when Emiko Dikytinson (see the entry above dated 11/16) was able to "convince" a publisher to publish a book of her "haikus" even after she was banned from writing haikus by the Haiku Validation Center and the International Federation of Haikus.
Dikytinson had fallen in love with Yoshiyuki Senryu (pictured at the left), the infamous head of the Senryu Seven, a group of seven disgruntled poets dissatisfied with the strict conventions of the haiku as set forth by Emmett Lee Dickinson. Senryu strong-armed his publisher into publishing a book with Dikytinson's false haikus under the name "Best Haikus" (pictured at the right). The publication did not include any poet's name on the cover. The book was panned by haiku critics and haikuologists all over the world. When word leaked out that Dikytinson and Senryu were behind the work, they were shunned throughout the world of poetry. |
Emmett Lee Dickinson, Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed (at her request) and the originator of the haiku, was furious with Yoshiyuki Senryu, both for trying to alter the parameters of the haiku, the poetic form he created, and for backing Emiko Dikytinson's unidentified publication of "best haikus." He wrote a haiku about Senryu called "Fame is a stink bug" (below left and center). His haiku was one of Emily Dickinson's inspirations for her poem "Fame is a bee" (below on the right).
November 18: Lumpy Haiku
Many companies and corporations have used the haikus of Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) in their advertising campaigns.
In the Serta ad pictured at the right, the company modified the Dickinson haiku pictured below in the bottom left corner of the ad. |
Dickinson's haiku below on the left inspired third cousin Emily to write her poem "Ample make this bed," below on the right.
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Can't fall asleep On this lumpy mattress -- even Though I'm dead tired. |
By Emily Dickinson:
Ample make this Bed – Make this Bed with Awe – In it wait till Judgment break Excellent and Fair. Be its Mattress straight – Be its Pillow round – Let no Sunrise' yellow noise Interrupt this Ground – |
November 19: Wild Haikus! Wild Haikus!
Slumberon was another mattress company that used haikus by Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) in their advertisements. Pictured at the right: A Slumberon advertisement with the Dickinson haiku entitled "Looking forward to" (pictured below). This haiku inspired third cousin Emily to write her poem entitled "Wild nights! Wild nights!" |
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Looking forward to A wild night of luxury. Where the hell are you? |
By Emily Dickinson:
Wild Nights — Wild Nights! Were I with thee Wild Nights should be Our luxury! Futile – the Winds – To a Heart in port – Done with the Compass – Done with the Chart! Rowing in Eden – Ah, the Sea! Might I but moor – Tonight – In Thee! |
November 20: Killer Haikus
The Rockdale Monument Company ran a series of advertisements based on the haikus of Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request).
Pictured at the right: The most successful Rockdale Monument Company ad referenced a haiku by Dickinson called "Where'd Aunt Mildred go?" |
Pictured at the left: Dickinson scrawled his haiku entitled "Where'd Aunt Mildred go"" on a death record from the Perish & Begone Funeral Parlor. The Dickinson family once lived in the basement of the Perish & Begone Funeral Parlor, owned and operated by Eberhard and Egan Perish and Caldwell Begone.
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Dickinson's haiku below on the left inspired third cousin Emily to write her poem "I noticed People disappeared," below on the right.
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
"Where'd Aunt Mildred go? And Grandpa too? Where's he been?" "Hush and eat your peas!" |
By Emily Dickinson:
I noticed People disappeared When but a little child – Supposed they visited remote Or settled Regions wild – Now know I – They both visited And settled Regions wild – But did because they died A Fact withheld the little child – |
November 21: A Hopeful Haiku
The postcard pictured above from Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) to his third cousins, the Dickinsons, in Amherst, Massachusetts, includes Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku that begins "Hope's what a little" (below on the left). That particular haiku was one of the inspirations cited by Emily Dickinson for her poem "'Hope' is the thing with feathers" (below on the right).
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Hope's what a little Bird told me even if/when I'm out of birdseed. |
By Emily Dickinson:
"Hope" is the thing with feathers – That perches in the soul – And sings the tune without the words – And never stops – at all – And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard – And sore must be the storm – That could abash the little Bird That kept so many warm – I've heard it in the chillest land – And on the strangest Sea – Yet, never, in Extremity, It asked a crumb – of Me. |
November 22: Haiku Addiction
Did you know that writing haikus is the third most serious addiction in the world? The Top 5 Addictions are as follows:
1. Coffee
2. Social Media (known as "FOMO," "Fear of Missing Out") 3. Writing (and talking in) Haikus 4. Candy Corn 5. Alcohol There is help, though, for those who can't stop writing haikus and speaking in five-seven-and-five syllables: The Sophia Higgins Haiku Addiction Center in Ithaca, New York. The Higgins Haiku Addiction Center, named for haiku addict Sophia Higgins, offers a full spectrum of haiku rehabilitation treatment services to clients based upon his or her individual needs as assessed through comprehensive evaluations at admission and throughout their participation in the addiction treatment program. Pictured at the right: The Sophia Higgins Haiku Addiction Center in Ithaca, New York. |
Pictured at the left: Sophia Higgins. Sophia's husband Henry Higgins founded and opened the Sophia Higgins Haiku Addiction Center (originally known as the Sophia Higgins Haiku Addiction Asylum) when his wife could not stop writing haikus and speaking in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.
In an interview for the Haiku Journal, a publication which celebrates the art of haiku poetry, Henry Higgins said, "She was addicted. She couldn't control herself. So I took action." |
Pictured at the right: Three clients who say the Sophia Higgins Haiku Addiction Center helped them overcome their addictions to writing haikus.
At the left: Joanna B. Breens included haikus every day in her children's school lunch boxes. For example: Here is a sandwich, Peanut butter and jelly, For your lunch. Enjoy! |
In the center: Millicent Pidgeon (Nick Nolte's great aunt) founded the Haiku Journal, a publication which celebrates the art of haiku poetry. She often wrote haikus about aging:
Got another pain. Seems I'm always stiff and sore. Getting older sucks. |
At the right: Claude Columbus Curd was a copy editor for Warriner's English Grammar and Composition, a self-proclaimed Grammar Nazi, and an amateur haikuolgist:
There's "their," "there," and "they're." What don't people understand? I don't understand! |
November 23: Slanted Haiku
Not only did Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) invent a corn planter that is still used by farmers today, he also invented Daylight Savings Time. On Dickinson's drawing of his corn planter (pictured below on the left), he wrote a haiku in the top left corner that alludes to standard time -- after the first experiment with Daylight Savings ended.
Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku reads as follows:
The light is slanted. Heavenly hurt -- the day dies. Back to standard time. |
The haiku by Emmett Lee Dickinson, "The light is slanted," inspired his third cousin Emily to write the poem blelow, "There is a certain slant of light":
There's a certain slant of light, On winter afternoons – That oppresses, like the Heft Of Cathedral Tunes – Heavenly Hurt it gives us – We can find no scar, But internal difference – Where the Meanings, are – None may teach it – Any – 'Tis the Seal Despair – An imperial affliction Sent us of the Air – When it comes, the Landscape listens – Shadows – hold their breath – When it goes, 'tis like the Distance On the look of Death – |
November 24: Dwell In Haikus
Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request) was the first to identify the condition known as "writer's block." He labeled the problem after various correspondences with his third cousin where she whined about being "blocked" from ideas to write about. Emmett Lee would always try to encourage Emily, as he did with the haiku pictured below.
Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku reads as follows:
Metaphoric'ly Anything is possible -- With no writer's block. |
Dickinson's haiku inspired Emily to write the poem below:
I dwell in Possibility – A fairer House than Prose – More numerous of Windows – Superior – for Doors – Of Chambers as the Cedars – Impregnable of Eye – And for an Everlasting Roof The Gambrels of the Sky – Of Visitors – the fairest – For Occupation – This – The spreading wide my narrow Hands To gather Paradise – |
November 25: A Haiku is Such a Little Thing
When Emily Dickinson died, a small box was found under her bed that was dedicated to her relationship with Emmett Lee Dickinson (her third cousin, twice removed -- at her request). The box included dolls of herself and her third cousin, a pen with which she wrote many poems, and many other mementoes. The box also included a handkerchief with a haiku written on it in Emmett Lee Dickinson's handwriting.
The handkerchief haiku (below on the left) inspired Emily Dickinson to write "It's such a little thing to weep" (below on the right).
By Emmett Lee Dickinson:
Don't sweat the small stuff Good advice it's true -- but you're Such a cry baby! |
By Emily Dickinson:
It's such a little thing to weep – So short a thing to sigh – And yet – by Trades – the size of these We men and women die! |
November 26: Haiku Turkeys?
Thanksgiving is synonymous with Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request); for more information, click HERE.
Not only did Dickinson invent the haiku, he also established as the official art form associated with the holiday. He wrote more poems (mostly haikus) about Thanksgiving than any other poet.
Pictured below: Three of Dickinson's more than 800 haikus about Thanksgiving.
Not only did Dickinson invent the haiku, he also established as the official art form associated with the holiday. He wrote more poems (mostly haikus) about Thanksgiving than any other poet.
Pictured below: Three of Dickinson's more than 800 haikus about Thanksgiving.
November 27: A Weighty Haiku
Weight gain is one of the most common themes in the poetry of Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at her request), and that is the theme of his haiku that begins, "Thinking of the past."
Third cousin Emily had asked Emmett Lee to sign her yearbook from Mount Holyoke College, and Dickinson wrote the haiku to her on the book's title page. Pictured at the right: The cover page of the Llamarada, Emily Dickinson's 1847 yearbook from Mount Holyoke College. Emily's signed the page at the top right, and Emmett Lee wrote his haiku "Thinking of the past" on the page.
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November 28: Haiku-ku
In the mid-1800s, Emmett Lee Dickinson submitted a design to patent what he called the "Haiku-ku Clock." A "haiku-ku bird" what chirp after 5 hours, then 7 hours, and then 5 hours -- and then the sequence of 5, 7 and 5 hours would start all over again. Only about a dozen or so clocks were ever made. The pattern of 5- 7-and-5 hours was just too confusing, and the idea of the haiku-ku clock never caught on with the public.
Pictured at the left: The patent submission by Emmett Lee Dickinson for the Haiku-ku clock. At the bottom of the design, Dickinson wrote a haiku that starts, "It's really that late?" His haiku later inspired third cousin Emily to write her poem, "Consulting Summer's clock."
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November 29: A Haiku Never Brewed
In the box of mementos found under Emily Dickinson's bed (see the entry above dated November 25), Emily kept a cocktail napkin from The Purple Onion, a popular bar and casino in Amherst that was opened and run by her sister, Lavinia Dickinson. On frequent occasions, Emily went there to meet Emmett Lee Dickinson (her third cousin, twice removed -- at her request). On the napkin, Emmett Lee Dickinson wrote his haiku that begins, "Love summer the best" (below on the left), the haiku that inspired Emily to write "I taste a liquor never brewed (below on the right).
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Pictured above: Emily Dickinson's prized cocktail napkin from one of her meetings with Emmett Lee Dickinson at Lavinia Dickinson's bar and casino The Purple Onion. The napkin includes Emmett Lee Dickinson's haiku "Love summer the best!"
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November 30: Emily's One & Only
Emily Dickinson revered Emmett Lee Dickinson (her third cousin, twice removed -- at her request), and she greatly admired his skill with writing haikus. She loved all of his haikus, but she found the format difficult and perplexing -- so much so that she only wrote one haiku in her entire lifetime.
When Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd published the first collection of Emily Dickinson's poems (pictured at the right), they included in the book Emily's one and only haiku which begins "What to write about" (pictured at the far right). The haiku reads as follows: What to write about When I am limited to Seventeen sylla – |