I have no intention of trying to write poetry now (other than the course assignments, naturally), but I felt that a bit more appreciation of rhythm and metre and the use of words wouldn't do my fiction writing any harm.
Anyway, the haikus, both inspired by things I saw driving to work.
red in the hedgerow
a hint of copper and rust
and so the year turns
eye-catching blue-green
the peacock at the roadside
hesitates
I don't offer these as being in any way good. But I write them because I find they fix a scene or a moment in my mind particularly well and re-reading one even a couple of years later can bring the original right back.
Like this one:
two magpies flying
against a dark sky
over sunlit fields
And trying to squeeze a whole scene into 5,7,5 is good practice for when you're looking for that telling detail to bring a story setting to life.