Haiku about Night-time: Week 8 of rewriting your well-being

I love the silent hour of night
For blissful dreams may then arise,
Revealing to my charmed sight
What may not bless my waking eyes.

 Anne Brontë, Best Poems of the Brontë Sisters

Thanks so much for coming along to week 8 of Haiku for You! This is a 12-week interactive blog-series where I will inspire you to write haiku for your daily mindfulness.

If you would like to know more about my series, feel free to revisit my introductory post where I explain why I began this journey with you all. My biggest intention is that my writing prompts you to find some calm moments within the hustle and bustle of your daily lives.

Before we continue, make sure you find yourself a snug space where you can watch the evening draw in. If the day is already over, make sure you can comfortably gaze into the jewelled darkness around you.

Take a slow, deep breath in …

and then back out.

This week, we are going to write haiku about

night-time.

Thoughts about night-time

It’s natural that anxiety and other mental health issues are prone to visit us more often in the night-time than in the daytime. That’s not to say that they aren’t as determined during a sunny afternoon, but it’s in the depth of darkness, when we are supposed to be sleeping, that we are often left alone with our thoughts.

Have you ever found yourself peeking through the curtains in the early hours of the morning and wondering why everyone’s windows are in darkness other than yours? While the rest of the street is in a deep slumber, do you find yourself tossing and turning whilst reflecting upon a decade of troubles? Don’t worry, the offensive remark you accidentally made to an acquaintance back in February 2017 was most likely forgotten in February 2017.

On average, we spend one third of our lives sleeping, but even though my previous post on dreams discusses the importance of sleep, and how to help us do this (which I am definitely reinforcing), right now, I am going to talk about how to appreciate the night while we happen to be awake.

The night is different to us all

Night-time can mean either relief or excitement for many who have a love-hate relationship with sleep. This can change over a course of months or years, depending on our circumstances. Some of us work night shifts, some collapse into bed at nine pm, some stay up for midnight feasts and TV, while others gaze at the stars, waiting for a little magic to happen.

But I think we can all agree that there is often something romantic about an evening closing in; the way it leaves us wanting that little bit more time while its dark sky is pulled over us like a blanket after an exhausting day.

So, what kind of night are you having?

Is it a thundery night, where you are wrapped in a blanket with a mug of coffee? Are there hailstones thrashing against the roof, or rain, rising like flames from the pavements? Is there a summer breeze teasing through the window? Will you go for a safe evening stroll with the dog? Are you lying in bed and waiting for dawn to show itself?

What does this night-time sound like?

Can you hear an owl t-wit t-woo? Or, if you are especially quiet, the flicker of a candle’s flame while you have a bath? Maybe you can hear a partner, family member or pet snoring or breathing heavily? In the stillness of the night, can you hear a clock ticking, or pipes creaking?

When it is night-time, you don’t only have to hear your own thoughts.

Haiku about night-time: some examples of my own

An evening in - 
hot cocoa and sweetened sleep,
for a faithful mug.
haiku about night-time
Blue skies become black,
a pinhole becomes the moon;
light grows from darkness.
arnold zhou s5Hq YBzZF0 unsplash
Kiss of summer dusk -
awake with early birdsong,
it dawns upon me
patrick hendry ZmIGHiaopTw unsplash

How to write your own haiku about night-time

Exercise duration: approximately 30 minutes

1. What time of night is it?

Is it the light touch of evening, or the early hours of the morning? Make a note of this.

2. Describe the atmosphere.

Is there silence? What can you hear? Write down three sounds.

3. Now, return to your surroundings.

Is it warm or cool? What is the mood of this night? The mood of the night does not have to be the mood of you.

4. Accept it as a moment passing.

How would the moment look if someone were to paint it? Pretend you are outside your head and paint the whole picture with words.

5. Remember, you are not alone. We are all writing these haiku together.

6. It’s time to write!

Now, using your notes, write your haiku about night-time.

Just remember, it’s three lines of 5-7-5 syllables! Refer back to How to write Haiku guidelines.

So, close your eyes and take another deep breath in …

and then back out …

How did you find it?

It can be all too easy to end up dreading the arrival of nighttime because it is when we can feel isolated, lonely, sad, be reminded of everything we are missing. However, there are plenty of good things to be aware of.

For many, the night-time is actually a popular time for creativity. Many famous artists and writers call themselves night owls and have achieved their best work during the twilight hours. This doesn’t mean you have to be an artist of any kind. It just means if you think you may be able to channel that unexpected night-time energy into haiku, go for it!

As my own day is drawing to a close, I would like to thank you again for using this time and space to be mindful, and allowing your eyes adjust to the daily darkness.

As always, I appreciate the poetry some of you have left in the comments sections over the previous weeks, and I am looking forward to your night-time words. Next week, I will be here with a brand new theme, but for now, I’ll keep that under wraps…

Remember, whether you are an early bird or a night owl, embrace the flight. While we are all looking at the same moon, we are less alone.

Now, let’s haiku away!

If you are happy to, please leave your beautiful haiku about night-time in the comments section below each post.

See last week – Week 7: Haiku about Animals

Haiku about night time 1

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26 Comments
  1. Wendy Evans

    The darkness comes fast
    Eerie silence clears the mind
    House creaks in the dark.

    • Georgia

      I love this, Wendy. It makes me think of winter nights when daylight disappears too quickly! A house can feel so much larger and more vulnerable in darkness too. You really capture that, and the helpfulness of silence sometimes. Thank you. 🙂

  2. Carolyn Jones

    Haiku about night-time
    Whispers in the dark
    Quiet streets, but noisy trees
    It’s raining again.

    • Georgia

      And it certainly has been raining again! I really like how it almost sounds like the tree branches are whispering in the wind here. Nature definitely takes the stage more in this crisis. Thank you for this vivid observation, Carolyn. 🙂

  3. Lotte Williams

    On the edge of sleep
    Mattress and self are as one
    Blanket hugs body

    • Georgia

      At one with dreams, and hopefully, positive ones! I like how the blanket has been personified, it makes it even more comforting. Also, this edge of sleep/waking is a peak time for creative thoughts! Perfect! Thanks, Lotte! 🙂

  4. Chris

    I love reading Georgia’s inspirational ideas and everyone’s haiku. This is such a lovely thread.

    • Georgia

      Thank you, Chris! 🙂 I’m glad it feels like a comforting place to visit! I love returning to read poetic words from you all. It’s really refreshing. 🙂

  5. Chris

    Awake in the night
    Daylight thoughts kaleidoscope
    Till dawn’s gentle kiss.

    • Georgia

      Thanks, Chris.‘Kaleidoscope’ used as a verb is so effective! The collision of thoughts with the attempt for further sleep is pictured spinning around and around in the brain. And we can all relate to this long wait until a new day finally begins. Thanks for this!

  6. Peter Gaskell

    Blanket of Night falls
    to soothe and lay the day’s cares
    to untroubled rest

  7. Peter Gaskell

    Blanket of Night falls
    to free the day and soothe the
    mind of troublesome cares

    • Georgia

      Thanks for this, Peter! I enjoyed thinking about the differences in meaning between your two haiku and how one is a little more passive than the other. It’s funny what a little arrangement can do! I definitely found both very soothing! I’m sure everyone else did too. 🙂

  8. Vivienne

    Peering through window
    The full moon gives me comfort
    Aiding my slumber

    • Georgia

      Thanks for the comforting image! 🙂 I like how it can mean either the moon peering in or the person looking out. Either way works. It’s great how haiku can hold so many interchangeable meanings. “Slumber” is one of those words that sounds exactly like what it is too. A very lovely haiku. 🙂

  9. Anna

    On the roof, a gull
    in silhouette tilts its head,
    and drinks the last light.

    • Georgia

      Wow! This looks like a bold oil painting to me, Anna. I can imagine the contrast! What an original perspective that the birds/a particular gull could be viewed as “drinking the light.” It definitely gives the power to the gull in this image, who I feel has an important backstory. 🙂 Thank you!

  10. Peter Gaskell

    Thanks for your comments, Georgia. I’m always going back to refine my haiku to make a different point or improve the metre / word flow

    here’s another version

    Blanket of Night falls
    to free the day, soothe away
    its troublesome cares

    17 syllables this time!

  11. Peter Gaskell

    Night, when man makes whole
    his splintered self and grows with
    the calm of a tree

    • Georgia

      I think this is one of my favourites of yours so far! ‘splintered self’ is amazing! Also, the very subtle slowness of the growth/realisation process as man/nature. And, no problem. Feel free to revisit as many haiku as you like! Thanks! 🙂

  12. Vivienne

    Just thought I’d squeeze this one in before the new theme

    As dusk approaches
    Lone Bat flapping and feeding
    Home to roost hangs head

    • Georgia

      Ooo, this one blends a few of our themes together! Very intriguing. A bat is a very interesting perspective, actually. They must see the world very differently to us, and observe so many things we would never encounter! Fascinating creatures. 🙂 I hope this one isn’t alone for too long! Thanks for sending another haiku! 🙂

  13. Peter Gaskell

    writing well never
    empty when refilled at night
    from springs that feed it

    (Ernest Hemingway)

    • Georgia

      Love it! Hemingway definitely had a talent for telling stories with very few words.

  14. Jenny Jayne

    Night. Reflective aid,
    To weigh the thoughts of daylight,
    And sweep cares away.

    • Georgia

      This is written with just the right language. 🙂 ‘Reflect,’ ‘weigh’ and ‘sweep’ cares away. Perfect description of the gentle power of night-time over day. Lovely. Thank you! 🙂

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