2026 Lyrical Iowa Haiku Contest

Michael Dylan Welch, judge

1st Place ($65)

deepening fog

whistle of a cardinal

colors my thoughts

Del Todey Turner, Waterloo, Iowa

The whiteness of this poem’s growing fog contrasts smartly with the red that’s easy to imagine for the cardinal. No wonder this image “colors” the poet’s thoughts. The bird isn’t seen but heard, yet even its sound colors those thoughts, an example of synesthesia. The cardinal’s distinctive song enlivens this poem, leaving us to wonder what thoughts the poet was having that have been affected by that song. Although this poem mentions no season, the fog’s whiteness might suggest winter.

2nd Place ($40)

gently crashing

wedding photographs

cherry blossoms

Roberta Beach Jacobson, Indianola, Iowa

These are photo-bombing wedding crashers that any of us would surely welcome. The beauty of blossoms in spring heightens the wedding experience, making the day, or at least this moment, even more memorable. We can only hope that the marriage lasts a long time, in contrast to the ephemeral beauty of falling cherry blossoms.

3rd Place ($25)

harvest moon

golden bobber

in river ripples

Virginia Mortenson, Des Moines, Iowa

This autumn image is easy to picture, with all the repeated “r” sounds seeming to echo the bobber’s bobbing in the river’s ripples. Whoever has been fishing may well have been there all day, now into the evening as the moon begins to rise. It’s a harvest moon, and we can hope that the person fishing has also harvested plenty of fish.

First Honorable Mention

winter birthday

Mom’s favorite ice cream

with a warm hug

Angela McGlothlen, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

The cold of winter and of ice cream finds balance in the hug’s warmth. We aren’t told who is hugging whom in this poem, but surely it’s the mother and an adult child. Perhaps it’s a thank-you hug for that ice cream, but more likely a loving embrace that goes far beyond a momentary thank you.

Second Honorable Mention

the puppy steps back

outside—

first snowflakes

Timothy Wheatly, West Des Moines, Iowa

The puppy here is not “stepping back outside.” Rather, it’s stepping back in resistance to what’s outside, at the edge of going outside, where it encounters those first snowflakes. We can empathize with the puppy that may be experiencing snow for the first time.

Third Honorable Mention

riverbank dock

the thrum of mayfly

gossip

Shelly Reed Thieman, West Des Moines, Iowa

It’s as if these mayflies are “gossiping” with their thrum. Of course, we know that they’re not, but this poem asks readers to project themselves or at least human propensities onto the mayflies. What might they be gossiping about? Whatever it is, their gentle thrum draws us in.

Additional Selections

false spring

blown away on gust of wind

snow swirls

Pat Bieber, Muscatine, Iowa

A vivid image of an Iowa winter. The middle line works as an effective pivot between the first and third lines.

plucked from the sidewalk

leaves circle in a whirlwind

disoriented

Vicky Dovenspike, Salem, Iowa

Who is disoriented in this poem? Perhaps the leaves, but maybe the observer too. Perhaps all of autumn is disorienting sometimes.