lake effect snow —
he has an answer
for everything
Published by
Julie Bloss Kelsey
Julie Bloss Kelsey discovered haiku through reading scifaiku and fell in love with both short forms. She is the author of three short-form poetry collections: The Call of Wildflowers (Title IX Press, 2020), Grasping the Fading Light: A Journey Through PTSD (Sable Books, 2023), and After Curfew (Cuttlefish Books, 2023). She currently writes a bi-monthly column, New to Haiku, for The Haiku Foundation, where she is on the Board of Directors. You can find her on Instagram (@julieblosskelsey) or X (@MamaJoules). Her first book, The Call of Wildflowers is available for free through her website. View all posts by Julie Bloss Kelsey
Intriguing. I am uncertain whether he has an answer for everything because he is a know-it-all or because someone is charging him with some misdeed and he is making excuses.
Welcome Julie Bloss Kelsey, and congratulations on your first poem on Tinywords!
I really enjoyed your opening image, which is quite unexpected. I come from an area where it never snows, so had to look up the expression, and find that it is a rather technical meteorological event – giving us a scientific seasonal reference. And it creates an ambiguous mood in regards the relationship implied in the rest of the verse, that really lifts this haiku out of the ordinary. On one reading the unnamed "he" thinks he has an answer for everything, but as is frequently argued in public discourse about the limits of scientific knowledge, "science" cannot answer moral, spiritual or personal conflicts. On that reading the author seems to be making a clever ironic play on what he doesn't know, what he cannot answer. And in the end, lake effect snow is cold after all.
Really great work, thanks for sharing it Julie
Strider
I read it that way at first. Then I thought about the wise "he"s I have known who have always had answers when I need them. Back when I lived where there was always lake effect snow. Beautiful.
I found this quite humorous. Very enjoyable :)
marion
Thank you all for the warm welcome. :) This poem was inspired by the time I lived near Salt Lake City. When I was growing up, there was a personable and entertaining weatherman who dressed up in a white suit for the evening forecast every time that he predicted snow. Quite often, "the lake-effect" was cited as a reason that more snow fell here or there or his forecast didn't quite live up to predictions. In my mind, that little phrase is a catch-all for why things don't always turn out as planned. So Dirk, you are right on both counts. This little poem is a personal favorite of mine and I'm glad it has finally found a home here.
This haiku makes me think of a friend who is a "walking encyclopedia". He knows all the right answers. I respect him too much to try to contradict him but I don't always agree with him.