The Makeover
Bean Poetry
from haiku to tanka and twittle
Recently I cooked using dry beans given to me as a wedding gift many years ago. That gift got me thinking about similarities and differences between people and beans, and I tried to explore that in a haiku poem.
Not only was I unhappy with my haiku, I also recalled that classic haiku poems don’t use explicit metaphor. I gave up on the haiku and wrote a story about magic beans and cooking chili, which was recently published in Medium: “Why do they say beans are magic?” Reading that story would provide context for my haiku, but it isn’t necessary.
Here’s the troublesome haiku:
BEFORE (original)
Haiku
pods of hard dry beans transform into healthy gifts just like people do
I mustered the courage to return to the haiku and overhauled it using two different forms of poetry: tanka and twittle. Both are included here because I couldn’t decide on one.
AFTER (revised)
Tanka
Pilfered from their pods to soak, boil, and then simmer: Softer when they’re done. Humans have nothing on beans; life cooks us till we’re tender.
Twittle
Dried beans rest and soak in water overnight, then rumble and simmer with vegetables ‘n’ spice to emerge as a tender delight.
Humans likewise rest at night then toil and intermingle by day; we search for purpose in this world till in the grave we lay.
Do we emerge from death transformed like beans from pods to plate? From burial place to spirit world, a truth left to debate.
THANK YOU Carolyn Hastings and Paper Poetry for providing this inspiring January prompt: The Makeover.
Do you have a poem that deserves a makeover? I want to invite all my Medium friends to consider responding to this prompt before it expires on January 31. Calling on Eko BP, Carrie Morrison, Belcairn, Neera Handa Dr, and TzeLin Sam
