Airless summer days ? ?? iridesce the silver throat ???? ??? of my tea kettle.
Published by
Sydell Rosenberg
Sydell Rosenberg (1929-1996) was a charter member of the Haiku Society of America, founded in 1968. Her first haiku published in a journal was in American Haiku, in 1967. She received her M.A. in English as a Second Language from Hunter College in NY in 1972, and became a teacher. Much of her haiku reflects a city sensibility. Syd also wrote and published other poetry, as well as prose. For several years, her haiku have been used by teaching artists with the NY non-profit arts education organization, Arts For All, to teach students in two public schools the basics of art, music, and theater. Syd?s new picture book, H Is For Haiku: A Treasury of Haiku from A to Z,was released in April 2018 by Penny Candy Books (pennycandybooks.com). She was married to Sam Rosenberg (d. 2003) for approximately 40 years. Her children are Amy Losak and Nathan Rosenberg. Amy, a veteran healthcare public relations executive in NY, is now writing and publishing her own short poems in an effort to continue her mom's legacy. View all posts by Sydell Rosenberg
As a tea lover in a world of "pick-up" lattes, this piece resonates with me. Even in the summertime, there is nothing more relaxing for me than to stand at the stove after putting the kettle on, wait patiently for the boil as my mind wanders blissfully, pour steaming water into my late mother's most precious china teacup, and proceed to the patio to watch the birds in the bird bath. Ms. Rosenberg's work encompasses this imagery beautifully!
T.Johnson: thanks for your lovely comment. I don’t know for sure but it wouldn’t surprise me if mom wrote this many years ago!
There is real tension in this as the writer waits patiently for the kettle to boil to quench a thirst caused by the airless day. The droplets of moisture on the 'throat' (wonderful description) of the kettle are making it worse. And you know what they say about watched kettles!
A wonderful haiku.
marion