A moon cycle in haiku

Don’t mess with her, her eyes warn the world. She'll soften again soon.

Mar 23, 2025

I was introduced to writing Haiku by

in her substack post The life-changing magic of writing haiku. During a creative writing class last year, I became more familiar with the practice and fell in love with it.

What is a Haiku?

“In theory a haiku is very simple. It is a seasonal seventeen syllable (5-7-5) or three line poem, which accurately describes what is happening in front of the poet. It is a poetic form that originated in Japan and is now one of the most popular styles of poetry in the world.” Beth Kempton

I started using Haiku to bring mindfulness to my morning walks. Describing what is in front of me, distilled to its simplest and most beautiful became a joy. You will find some of my Haiku’s in my substack notes.

Beth Kempton

beautifully explains …

“Usually written from direct experience or memory, not imagination, a haiku can capture anything from the magnificence of a starry sky to the tiniest movement of a butterfly’s wing.”

If you have followed my substack for a while you’ll know I’ve been tracking my menstrual cycle for years. Noticing the ebb and flow of my cycle and working on accepting the transient nature of all things within my body, mind and soul. The important part of this is not just noticing the ebb and flow but accepting it.

You can read more about cycle tracking in my previous post Women’s Cyclical Wisdom or in my Cycle tracking E-book.

My practice of cycle tracking had become a little stale, I was missing more days than I was tracking and losing sight of myself. So after discovering Haiku and loving the process of distilling down those three beautiful lines, I wondered if using Haiku to track my menstrual cycle would take me deeper on a journey of self reflection and self discovery.

Through December last year I made a commitment to write one Haiku for every day of my menstrual cycle. Three lines to reflect on my energy, emotions and physical state. The practice enhanced my cycle tracking experience and brought a beautiful tenderness and poetry to each day.

I’m sharing the results of my Haiku adventure here with you to illustrate how normal it is for a woman to feel full of motivation and light one day, boiling with anger the next and fatigued and drained the day after that. You might see yourself in this cycle or you might be relived that you are nothing like me. All of it is real and normal.

In this flow of Haiku poems, cycle day one to seven roughly describes the menstrual phase (often a time that we feel quiet and insular). This is the new or dark moon phase. Days seven to fourteen are the pre ovulation phase, energy is rising (the waxing moon phase). Days fourteen to eighteen (ish) are our summer season of ovulation(full moon) and from ovulation we head into our premenstrual phase where we begin to wind down for menstruation (waning moon). I can’t stress enough that all women are different in the length of their cycle and the way that they feel.

If you want to try writing a Haiku each day of your cycle (menstrual or moon cycle if you do not bleed) all you need is a quite space for a few minutes each day and a note book. Haiku tend to have 3 lines. The first line has five syllables, the second has seven syllables and the third has five. If you can’t make it work, break the rules! You’ll see that I have. Notice what is present for you that day, nobody is going to see it (unless you publish it like me !) so no there’s need to edit yourself. See what flows out.

And if you feel like sharing one of your Haiku poems I would love to see them ! Either send me a message or share in the comments.

A moon cycle in haiku

Don’t mess with her, her eyes warn the world. She'll soften again soon.

What is a Haiku?

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