Pops

Pops, or American Haiku, were a form used by Jack Kerouac that has greatly inspired me. Here are some Pops that I wrote back in 2016.

8/6

East River-bound, on deck we

soaked up grey smog

of summer morning, South Bronx.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Under weigh, ship rolled away

and towards New York. It

rippled river with frothy wake.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Straddled by hairless white legs,

we stretch our fingers

to touch, barely, Ed Koch.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

NY spits us out, like it

always will, into

the sometimes blue-er Jersey.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

8/7

Empty hull is tossed

by waves, and is

a wave.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Between here and horizon

there is only swelling

blue.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Between these bulkheads

there is only swelling

blue.

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

Open hull is full

of waves, and is

a wave.

***************************

These Pops are also a part of my ongoing Diarist series here on Vocal! If you're interested, check out some of the Diarist Entries on my Sea Letters or my time working on a research vessel in Alaska. Drop a like or a tip below if you enjoyed this! Thanks for reading and supporting my work.