The following haiku sequence was first published in Under the Bashō, now defunct, in 2025. The first line of each haiku is a name for off-brand Mountain Dew soda.

Radioactive

mountain dew

condensation on the can

summer morn 

mountain summit

the pop and hiss

of the pull-tab

mountain frost

the click of ice

against glass

mountain lightning

fluorescent syrup

cracks the ice

mountain showers

a rush of bubbles

rise to the surface

mountain splash

the assault of citrus

on my tongue

mountain fury

coolness slips

down my throat

mountain explosion

energy floods

my brain

mountain lion

ready to

conquer the world

The following tanka sequence was first published in the Fall 2025 edition of Ribbons. The sequence travels geographically across North Dakota from east to west, detailing significant places from my childhood. Tatanka is the Lakota word for bison, a creature of great significance to North Dakotans.

North Dakota Bones

Red River Valley

amidst the powerline forest

and cell tower sentinels

I pull back the quilt

of endless farmland

Drift Prairie

a sea of corn

washes over the hills

drowning my judgment

of those who still live here

returning home

after twenty years

my appreciation grows

for this land of sky and nothing

and the limitless horizon

the Badlands

the scruffy bison lumber

over sage and cacti

surrounding our car

we yield to their right-of-way

Little Missouri River

we cross the muddy water

just kids with tans

collecting tatanka bones

misfit sons of the prairie

The following haiku sequence was first published in Under the Bashō, now defunct, in 2025.

Water

driving rain

along the highway

the window fogs

biting sleet

changing a tire

in the dark

sideways ice

a hot shower

washes away the cold

howling wind

dripping clothes by the door

tomato soup

winter storm warning

windows shaking

I draw the covers

swirling snow

no place to go

alarm clock shut off