Early Book Review: If It Rains Pancakes: Haiku and Lantern Poems by Brian P. Cleary, Andy Rowland

If It Rains Pancakes: Haiku and Lantern Poems by Brian P. Cleary, illustrated by Andy Rowland, is a book that explains and celebrates two types of ancient Japanese poetry: haiku and lanterns. It is currently schedule for release on May 1 2014. There are short introductions with an outline of the basic rules of each form followed by a series of poems in explained format. The poems range from silly to sweet, with lighthearted illustrations adding to the books appeal.

If it Rains Pancakes is a wonderful way to explore poetry with children, or for yourself. I loved getting a better understanding of the haiku, and seeing lanterns for the first time. The short non-rhyming poems are unique in style and take some getting used to, but can be great fun to work with. I enjoyed the range of silly, warm hearted, and serious subject matters- showing that the form of poetry is versatile even in its  strict structure. The illustration do a nice job of illustrating the poems and bring the subject home.

I would recommend If it Rains Pancakes for classroom, homeschooling, and pure enjoyment. It can be used as a great tool to help explain these particular forms of poetry, and to foster enjoyment in poetry in general. the illustrations and poems make it well worth perusing for its own sake.

Rear Window

I watch the world go by
Swiftly passing my eye
The fast fades away
And I try to forget today.

Tomorrow is a fresh start
I hold that hope in my heart
Moving on seems to be an art
I pray to hit the mark.

I watch the rear window
Wishing that I did not know
About the when and how
That made the world different now.

Mess- Sunday Scribblings

Mess

Revolving cycle
Clean and calm then
Chaotic clutter.

Straightening
Seems only to encourage
Greater destruction.

This time I win
Because you will not
Undo my hard work.

But I know
Moments after unpacking
It will begin anew.

(can you tell I have toddlers?)

Paper Doll

An old poem of mine about trying to break out of a controlling relationship and be myself.

Paper Doll

I may be little and cute
But I can make up my own mind
I don’t need you
To pick out my clothes
Or tell me how to do my hair
I can decide where I want to be
Who to see, why, where and when

I’m not a child
Or your personal pet
I’m not your paper doll
To cut up and dress

Don’t pat my head
And send me on my merry way
I hate that you
Try to control my every move.
I need to speak my own mind
And I don’t always agree with you.
Let me be myself, love me as I am.

I’m not a child
Or your personal pet
I’m not your paper doll
To cut up and dress

Just walk away
It is past time for us to part ways
I can’t have you
Always telling me what to do
I can’t believe I stayed so long
I need to; I want to live my own life
Time for me to find myself, be myself.

I’m not a child
Or your personal pet
I’m not your paper doll
To cut up and dress.

Courage

Courage

It is not in the slaying of dragons
Nor brazen chances for harm
It is in the daily motions
That fill your life with charm.

It is found in the mother
Who gives everything
To love and support another
Despite the risk of losing.

It is in the lovers' eyes
As they surrender themselves
Mind, body, souls and lives
To the one with keys to their hells.

Love

I seek only love, time and caring
Not sparkles and bangles
Not flowers and staring.

I do not crave a big demonstration
Of what you think I want
But simple consideration.

A morning in, a extra hours sleep
Silence, peace for an hour
With not a peep.

innocence

Fluent in wonder
You refuse to give in
To be sucked under
The waves of sin.

You take each moment
Each opportunity
To take what is sent
And see it with purity.

Oh, to see the world
Though eyes so trusting
As my life unfurled
Instead I am writing.

Alchemy

Alchemy

I bend and shape
the very world
to my will.

Making it fit my
needs and desires
moving forward.

Lead into gold
is not my aim
but changing minds.

I take ignorance
and attempt to
introduce thought.

Bring some light
into the dark
closed mind.

Dark

Dimness reigns
Covering all in it's cloak.
I shut my eyes,
Knowing that I miss nothing.
There is nothing left to see.

I hear you move,
Know that you are there.
I feel your very presence.
Feel you near to me
But do not move.

Night has fallen
I am alone in my head
Even though you are
Lying right next to me
We don't talk, don't move.

Together but separate
Bonded as a pair by love
By law and by family
Yet the gulf that separates
Sometime seems greater still.

Pigs Fly

I always said, never
When pigs fly
But some must have
Sprouted wings and
Taken to the sky.

I said it would happen
When hell freezes over
So it must be so
Very chilly where
Demons dare to dwell.

After a month of Sundays
It finally happened
That which I thought
What I swore would never occur
I'm not sure how it will play.

Red

Red

The color of shoes, nails and blood
The color of both rising and setting sun.
The color of fear, pain and anger.

It colors my world filling in the edges
I try not to see it, to focus on gentler shades
A shiny ripe apple, your lips, flowers.

But the darker deep shades intrude
Reminding me of what I'd like to forget
If only I could close my eyes and not see red.

Why

Why?

Why?
Why not?
Why couldn't I?
Why not simply enjoy
One single moment for me?

Why?
Why change?
Why do something?
Why make myself happy
With something simple and small?

Why?
Why argue?
Why must I?
Why do I have to push
To gain the simplest things?

Restart

Restart

That button glow blue
Iridescent, beckoning me.
How easy to hit that circle
And restart my work.
If only it were so easy
To restart the day, week, year.

Small things snag at me
Cause my mind to hang up and stall.
I lag and wait for what's next.
The next problem, next screen.
Another crisis to demand
My full attention, my devotion.

I long to hit that restart
Reset my day, my life altogether.
But for all that I would change
There is more I would keep.
So much I could never
Want to leave behind.

Midninght wonderings

I sit and stare, half asleep
Wishing you were sleeping
I see a speck, a mark
On the kitchen floor
Small and black it mocks me.
I sit and rock in an attempt
To put you to sleep
But I can't take my eyes away.
Staring I see it grow, move
But is it real or a product
Of my own motion, my mind.
It seems to squirm and grow
With every breath I take.
Writhing on it's tile,
Not crossing and mark
That might let me know
If any motion was real.

Till I Sleep

Till I Sleep

Till I sleep
I’m going to lie here
And think of what I want to dream
All about our last kiss
What might come next
It is all about you

Why should I give in to sleep
I just want to bask in your glow
I want to hold on to each moment
And never let you go
The dawn will come too soon
And in the waking hours
I will dream of you

flower and my path

The Flower

She opens her petals and faces the sun
Turning as it walks across the sky
As a woman watches the man she loves
When it is out of her sight once more
She closes up to await his return
When he will cross her path again
And its brother moon is hidden
From her sight she knows that the sun
Her love will soon return to her.



My Path

I wander alone
Lost in thought
Blundering through life
As most people must
Hoping to find their path
Just as I hope to find mine
I feel that I surely will
But as of yet I have not
I’ve not even gotten a glimpse
Of what it might be
And I fear that I might miss it
Not recognizing it
Or find it too late

Different

Different

I thought today might be different
I though today you might care
I thought today might be the day
That you show me what you say

I hoped that this morning
As the sun shone in the room
That today might be the day
That I got more than words
You say that you love me,
And tell me that I’m your world
Then you mock my dreams
And destroy this little world

I thought today might be different
I though today you might care
I thought today might be the day
That you show me what you say

When called to say I was thinking of you
You signed and made it fast
Didn’t want to be bothered
With anything I had to say
How can you say you love me?
Say all those pretty words
Then turn around and cut me
And burn my hopes to ash

I thought today might be different
I though today you might care
I thought today might be the day
That you show me what you say

When I dare to question
When I finally stand up and cry
You say I’m being silly
And that I need to change
When I finally get set to leave
You say that no one else
Could ever love me like you
No one would want to

more poems

My Wall

I once hid within a wall
Safe, secure but lonely
The he broke down
All of my defenses
And slowly stripped me
Of all I was and believed
You helped me defend
My fractured soul
From the spotlight
He put on my faults
I can still feel the burn
The scrutiny that light brought
Finally I forced myself
To brake free from
His painful tyranny
You helped my rebuild
My wall, but different
Now my wall has doors
To which you hold the key
Then you left me behind
Alone, but with the memories
Of you that I struggle to forget
To go on with life
But you locked me in
With visions and feelings
That lie beyond myself.


Warmth

In your arms I am at home safe and loved.
When we have to say goodbye,
Even for a moment, it is so hard.
When you take my in your arms
For a fond farewell,
I am safely rapped in a cocoon
Of warmth and friendship
That I never want to leave.
Why is it so hard to let go of you?
Is it simply our renewed friendship?
Or is it something more?
I am willing to risk my heart for
You, my friend, my love.

more

Weight

My heart is a weight in my chest
Solid, still, unmoving
I hold my breath
Hoping to feel.


In the ocean of friendships
I sink to the bottom
Bogged down
Stuck to the floor.


My heart is a concrete block
Heavy, hard, unmoving
Locked away from
Myself and you.

Why

Why am I here
Is there a reason
Why can't I do
More for my friends
Why is their pain
So overwhelming
Why will they go
Before I return
Why do they want
To leave me all alone
Don't they see it
My pain surrounds
Why don't they care
That I hurt like they do
Why do I stay
And keep on struggling
Why am I here
Is there a reason?

Our World, Tommorow

Our World

The world was made for us
Sacrifice and pain secured it
But day by day we destroy it
Forgetting the gift we were given
We kill with hate and fear
Ignorance and loathing spread

Lets stop the madness
And try to protect this world
Because this we're in together
And are not likely to receive
A second chance if we fail
And destroy the gift we were given


Tomorrow

I see tomorrow as a place
To take a stand
A place to lend a hand
To help our sisters
And Save our brothers
To aid other lands
With Joy and Peace

I hope tomorrow is a place
Like I see it
I pray it might be
We help each other
And save each other
So we can all live
With Joy and Peace