In honor of poetry month—and the arrival of spring—we invited Fordham employees to share a haiku with the University community. If you recall from English class, a haiku follows a three-line, 5-7-5 syllable format and typically paints a picture of nature. They are also traditionally untitled, but we were happy to make a few exceptions to the rule below.
Pipes in Dealy Hall
Groan and clang against the cold
Then rays, on my desk
—Asif Siddiqi, PhD, professor of history
Snow melts into snow—
drops dripping from spritely stems.
Persephone’s gift.
—Olivia Poust, assistant director, Center on Religion and Culture
The seed swells, ruptures.
A root. A stem. Now two leaves!
More drama awaits.
—Jeanne Flavin, PhD, professor of sociology
An awakening—
Budding trees preen, dance in silk
A dove! Hello, spring!
—Françoisline J. Freeman, senior assistant director, Office of Student Financial Services
Squirrel, sitting still
on a branch budding green,
did you miss birdsong?
—Goutam Gajula, PhD, lecturer of anthropology
To Minneapolis
Daffodils aflame
Blooming underneath the ice
A revolution
—Diane Detournay, PhD, senior lecturer of English
Philadelphia Spring
North twenty-first street
The cherry blossoms have me
Let’s play hooky now?
—Matt Burns, director for reunion programs and affinity groups,
Development and University Relations
New York Spring
Feels like spring is here
Wait, why is it so hot now
Then back to freezing
—Eunji Kim, adjunct professor of Japanese
Love to haiku you
But the sky is blue and green
Grass tickles my toes
—Daniel Kohn, PhD, lecturer of chemistry
