Celebrating Haiku in the Heights

ENJOY OVER 50 HAIKU DECORATING BUSINESSES IN THE HEIGHTS

The poems were written by your friends and neighbors in response to our Call for Original Haiku inspired by the green spaces, history, streets and shops of this distinctive neighborhood. Arlington’s Poet Laureate Steven Ratiner enlisted his Beehive Poets in contributing more poems, which you can read below. The result of the Heights Haiku project? More than 200 entries, of which 50 haiku — written by poets ranging in age from 7 to 91 — were selected for installation in storefronts surrounding the intersection of Massachusetts and Park Avenues.
You can read about this project — the Call to Artists, tips for writing haiku, organization of workshops, organizers and supporters  — here.
Visit the HEIGHTS HAIKU ARCHIVE and search by first name to enjoy all the Haiku we collected for this project!
These haiku are painted in the windows of Big Picture Framing by the Beehive Poets
Bus Stop
Gazing up Mass. Ave.
waiting for you to come home.
Sixty-two years overdue.
– Steven Ratiner
Future Indications
A four-year-old squeals, peppering
the driveway with his toy gun.
A father stands nearby, lost in headphones.
– Andy Oram
Baby like pope
torso erect, arm outstretched
two fingers waving.
– D. Heidi Hample
The path to the pond
is not the path from the pond
on a moonless night.
– Philip Lewis
un-kissed laughter
spilling over coffee cups
breathing summer anew
– Jessica Weaver
Nothing is sweeter
than a custard stand just up
the street from cookies!
– Ellen Vliet Cohen
Roofers, yellow hardhats
sport with the sky –
rootless daisies
– JC Foritano
Full moon, you don’t mind
that I am often churlish!
You still shine on me.
– Thomas DeFreitas
My apple tree.
Tiny buds appear. I add compost,
hoping for fruit.
– Michelle Seligson
On the road to Lexington
Paul Revere can stop for
tacos, curry, sushi, pad thai.
– John Pijewski
NEIGHBORHOOD HAIKU PARTNERS
Neighborhood Haiku was organized by the Arlington Commission for Arts & Culture in collaboration with:
Arlington Heights Community Association
Arlington Heights Neighborhood Action Plan Implementation Committee
Arlington Community Media, Inc.
Robbins Library
Town of Arlington Department of Planning and Community Development

HEIGHTS BUSINESS CONTRIBUTORS
Century 21 Adams, Celebration Sponsor
Christian Science Reading Room
Classic Kitchen and Bath Design
D’Agostino’s Deli
Heights Barber Shop
J&L Hair Studio
Maruichi Japanese Food and Deli
MyEyeDr
Old Schwamb Mill
Roasted Granola, Celebration Sponsor
Sports Etc.
Szechuan Dumpling
Utopia Cleaners
Wanamaker True Value Hardware
Neighborhood Haiku was organized by Cecily Miller, Jessie Brown, Janet O’Riordan, Robert Davison and Julie Horvath and funded by a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council via the Grants Committee of ACAC, with support from local business donors. This Heights Haiku Celebration is sponsored by Century 21 Adams and the Roasted Granola Cafe.
POETS/BUSINESS HOSTS/PAINTERS
Ann LeRoyer, poet. Classic Kitchen and Bath. Anne Ellinger, painter
Anneleen Van Herck, poet. Kumon Math & Reading Center. Robert Davison, painter
Anne Sullivan, poet. Szechuan Dumpling. Kaitlyn Longmire, painter
Brad Bennett, poet. Cookie Time. Andy Rubinson, painter
Brad Bennett, poet. Hairsay II. Anne DiNoto, painter
Carla Gates, poet. Thai E Sarn Cuisine. Corwin Dickson, painter
Claire Odum, poet. J&L Hair. Jill Manca, painter
Constance Short, poet. Roasted Granola Cafe. Cecily Miller, painter
Deb Wachenheim, poet. Utopia Cleaners. Gwen Chasen, painter
Elana Grayson, poet. Century 21 Adams, Robert Davison, painter
Ellen Vliet Cohen, poet. Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli. Robert Davison, painter
E Maurice, poet. RepHAIRations. Kenji Nakayama, painter
E Maurice, poet. The Fitness Studio
Gayle Roby, poet. Roasted Granola Cafe. Lillian Forney, painter
Grace Solomonoff, poet. Oreck Vacuum. Emily Zhu, painter
Hillyer Thayer, poet. Heights Barber Shop. Grace Willoughby, painter
Jeannie Martin, poet. Cookie Time. Robin Bergman, painter
Jeannie Martin, poet. Roasted Granola Cafe. Robert Davison, painter
Jessica Lucci, poet. Hot Pot Restaurant
Jessie Brown, poet. Cambridge Savings. Cecily Miller, painter
Joe Curro, poet. My Eye Dr. Lillian Forney, painter
Jonathan Cole, poet. Classic Cafe. Grace Willoughby, painter
Kate Barvick, poet. My Eye Dr. Jason Forney, painter
Kathleen Fink, poet. Apothca. Meg Nichols, painter
Katie Tardiff, poet. Szechuan Dumplings. Maria Lobo, painter
LennyD, poet. Cambridge Savings. Anne Ellinger, painter
Linda Braun, poet. Wannamakers Hardware. Anne Ellinger, painter
Lisa Moncevicz, poet. D’Agostino’s Deli. Sean Hastings, painter
Lise Hildebrandt, Wonder Yoga, Madeleine Burrowes, painter
Lourie August, poet. Classic Kitchen and Bath. Anne Ellinger, painter
Mary Rowen, poet. Star Nails. Emily Zhu, painter
Matt Perry, poet. Apothca. Meg Nichols, painter
Nick Castellano, poet. Roasted Granola. Jason Forney, painter
Ray Anne Powhida, poet. Kumon Math and Reading Center. Genevieve Oba, painter
Sean H, poet. Yassou’s. Maria Lobo, painter
Stephen Poltorzycki, poet. Thai E Sarn Cuisine. Genevieve Oba, painter
Steven Ratiner, poet. D’Agostino’s Deli. Sean Hastings, painter
Sue Sheffler, poet. Sports Etc. Corwin Dickson, painter
Susan Lloyd McGarry, poet. Roasted Granola Cafe. Cecily Miller, painter
Suzanne McLeod, poet. Horizons Hair Salon. Suzanne McLeod, painter
Vivi Amarantidis, poet. Cambridge Savings. Gwen Chasan, painter
Neighborhood Haiku Installation by the Beehive Poets Group, a group of experienced and aspiring writers based at Robbins Library and led by Steven Ratiner, Arlington Poet Laureate
Hosted by Big Picture Framers
Painted by Suzanne McLeod (poems) Cecily Miller (intro) and Grace Willoughby (graphics)
Andy Oram
D Heidi Hemple
Ellen Vliet Cohen
JC Foritano
Jessica Weaver
John Pijewski
Michelle Seligson
Phillip Lewis
Steven Ratiner
Thomas DeFreitas
HAIKU IN THE HEIGHTS is supported by grants from the Grants Committee of Arlington Commission for Arts and Culture, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.