My Story: how haiku found me

Hello and welcome to Everyday Haiku!

As a graphic designer and haiku poet, I have always had a passion for the arts. My core belief is that we are all creative in many different and unique ways. I started designing and sharing my designs when I was very young and turned my dream into reality. When I was in high school I decided to opt out of a safe, traditional career path. I made a courageous step into the unknown at the age of 18 by going to art college. It wasn’t long after graduation that I became disillusioned with the professional design and advertising industries. I went through a roller coaster of full-time and freelance jobs that weren’t fulfilling. I wanted to save the world and do something more meaningful that felt more important than designing print ads that would eventually end up with the rest of the junk mail. I wanted to be an artist, not a graphic designer. I felt my calling was to do something I considered significant, but I didn’t know what that was or how to make it happen.

My frustration continued to grow until a friend’s mother suggested I participate in a craft fair. I thought this might be a good creative outlet I could explore while continuing to deliver freelance work. I was thrilled when I found out that I was accepted into a summer craft fair in Comox, BC.

The challenge of creating something to sell at the fair led me to create art cards that featured my grandmother’s haiku. It was a perfect fit. The special bond I had with my grandmother became stronger as I started to work on the project. My sisters and I had often visited her in Victoria, and I loved spending time with her. Born in London, she manifested an unusual sensitivity to the human condition in her poetry. Creative, modern, and charismatic, I was drawn to her metaphysical, spiritual, and artistic interests, primarily haiku. The idea of using her poetry and introducing people to haiku, combining her poems with my designs, was a collaboration that thrilled us both. Asian-inspired art was a new passion I had to explore, and I wanted that passion to be a purpose.

Fast forward 25 years. Over many years of exploration, I find myself wanting to share and teach others my love of design and haiku. Learning about haiku and writing poetry has helped me to be more present, keeps me more  grounded and able to stay in the flow of everyday life. Haiku feeds my soul and  opens my heart in a way I’ve benefited from profoundly which allows life to unfold effortlessly.