pale moon . . .
not half the man
I used to be
Published by
Mike Farley
I live with my wife Shirlee on a cattle ranch near the little ski town of Red Lodge, Montana, and have been loving and writing haiku for several years now. I draw my inspiration from the images of the high-plains, mountains, weather, wildlife, livestock, ranch work and outdoor recreation which surround me daily.
View all posts by Mike Farley
in the mirror
same face as yesterday
sun’s reflection
terrytip
Yes! Perhaps you are a new man you are
unable to recognize yet?
loved the Mike farely haiku.
I’ve been to Montana many years ago – 1982 wonderful inspirational scenery there.
here’s my answer taken from an English landscape
Daffodils tremble;
April showers drench the earth:
Seedlings kiss the sun.
Great!
Good one, Mike – Glad to see you back on the site!
Wow! That’s gorgeous!
Outstanding haiku…when I first read it, I thought perhaps my wife had secretly penned it using my I.D.–I am in my late 30’s and feel your pain. ;0)
You mean there’s two of us out here? I’m 68 so you must be a son I never knew about.
the old mike
Twice the man you used to be? Or, in the light of the ages, 1.5 times the man you used to be?
Anyway, your ku touches a nerve with me.
strikes a cord with me also Mike. Enjoyed,
oh, it looks like you have a great kid too.
I guess since he writes in upper case, he’s taller?
here is the land of the free and the home of the drugged i’m sure there’s something out there that can restore you to wholeness…
bright blue pill…
twice the man
i was at thirty
Hi, Mike!
I close my eyes.
With me
the night…
“Suddenly, I’m not half the man I used to be”
“There’s a shadow hanging over me,
“Oh, yesterday came suddenly”.
The above first line of the Beatles song without the words “Suddenly and I’m”, are probably coincidental. I do believe it was.
Mike – I LOVE your haiku. I am a woman, but I can still relate to the feeling which lingers at the heart of your words; this makes your haiku universal (in my opinion). Bravo to you!
Please keep them coming.
-Felica
Thank you everyone. “Pale” is how I felt at that particular moment. Other times I feel this way . . .
feeling my oats . . .
a bullfrog above the din
of pond noise
mike
Not the most important thing in the world, but, for me, the echo of the Beatles song adds something. Of course, the expression itself is even older than the Beatles. (Sadly, they’re just half the Beatles they used to be, and that adds something, too.)
Haiku work well on many levels including allusion, so whether intentional or not, a great nod to The Beatles, and earlier references of ‘half the man’ etc…
methinks, less we forget, the countless men and women, over the aeons, this thought, “half the man/woman”, has come and will come to possess, too soon the hour; long before and after the beatles.
in one’s haste to unfavorably critique, one’s shortsightedness is typically exposed.
–
brown leaf
flittering among the green leaves
this english sparrow
Recognise the feeling. Mirrors tell us so many things whether we want to hear them or not.