Welcome to our mini-series on The Auroras & Blossoms Haiku Anthology, which celebrates the poets featured in volumes 1-3.

Today, Diane Meyer Lowman and Mawadda Elbanhawy are telling us what inspired the haiku & senryu they sent us.

Diane Meyer Lowman

Diane Meyer Lowman is the Poet Laureate Emeritus of Westport, Connecticut, and the first person named to the position. She is an award-winning essayist, and the author of the memoir Nothing But Blue. She has written over 2,000 haiku.

Website: https://www.dianemeyerlowman.com

Diane has three haiku featured in Volume 1:

I have written a daily haiku for over seven years and superimposed them on photographs I’ve taken. Sometimes the photograph inspires the poem; sometimes I look to take a picture of something that speaks to what I’m feeling. It’s like journaling for me.

I love the haiku form because it forces a discipline that makes me distill and condense my thoughts and impressions. I hope, in seventeen syllables, to convey a whole snapshot of a moment in time. For this reason, it’s especially meaningful to me to combine them with the photographs. 

Mawadda Elbanhawy

Mawadda Elbanhawy is an undergraduate student pursuing Development and International Relations studies. She likes to express herself through many forms of art, including poetry. She hopes to inspire people to try new and unfamiliar things despite the initial fear of failure.

Website: https://www.instagram.com/iammawadda

Mawadda has three haiku featured in Volume 2:

What inspired the first haiku is my love for the cultural aspect of tea. Almost every nation has their own unique way of making it, which reflects their history and native plants. For me, adding honey to tea and watching the mixture come to life gave me the sudden realization of all the cultural beliefs associated with mixing the ingredients.

For the second haiku, I was talking to my friend about how mothers are often the pillars of their family, and I was inspired with the idea of the paperweight of my life when I was pondering what my mom meant to me. 

Diane and Mawadda, thank you for sharing what inspired your haiku. We are honored that you sent us your work.

See you soon for the next instalment in our series.

In the meantime, don’t forget to pick up your copy of The Auroras & Blossoms Haiku Anthology: Volume 1!

The Auroras & Blossoms Haiku Anthology

And don’t forget, volume 2 will be out next week!

Cendrine & David

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