Haiku 2020

November, 2020, Rock Hill

Congratulations to 16 students from Rock Hill high schools whose Haiku poetry now appears on downtown sidewalks.

Seventeen poems were selected from 48 entries to be stenciled on sidewalks along Main Street, Elk Avenue, Trade Street Walkway, and Cotton and Commerce alleys.

Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry with 17 syllables in three lines - five syllables in the first and third lines and seven syllables in the second.

Special thanks to the Rock Hill School District and the Arts Council of York County for assisting WAI with the project.

Also in April, during National Poetry Month, pizza boxes at Little Caesars, Papa John’s, and Pizza Hut, all in Rock Hill, will feature Haiku written by this year's student winners. The Poetry and Pizza project is sponsored by the Rock Hill Poet Laureate Committee and includes poetry by Ella Norris, Alley Pridmore, Isaac Dix, Grace Arwood, Grace Potter, Maliik Cooper, Alexis Walker, Tyana Vongsay, and Alexandra Waterhouse.

Listen as WRHI interviews Haiku co-chair, Carolyn Moore.

Watch Alley Pridmore and Alexandra Waterhouse share their insights on CN2 Spotlight.

2020 winners are:

1. Ella Norris/9th/NWHS

I saw three seagulls

Flying with the ocean breeze

Together and free

2. Grace Potter/9th/NWHS

The beach is calming

The sand slides under my toes

The waves are soothing

3. Grace Arwood/11th/RHHS

Grayed paths pave firm hope

That even endings bear joy

Despite draining doubts

4. Isaac Dix/10th/RHHS

In reality,

Among the thoughts we create,

We are minuscule.

5. Jamie Hill/9th/RHHS

Time is relentless

Racing us towards our fate

Gifting all we have

6. Alley Pridmore/11th/RHHS

You’re a butterfly

Molded from your past and grit

To a strong beauty.

7. Tyana Vongsay/11th/RHHS

pass the Calories

fulfilling both Health and Heart

I’ll worry elsewhere

8. Alexis Walker/11th/RHHS

End of a Chapter

Closing of a book, but wait-

Nothing is over

9. Alexandra Waterhouse/10th/RHHS

Rain hits the window

A comforting sound to me,

It clears for new days.

10. Kesli Horn/12th/SPHS

When the nation calls,

Goodbyes do not come easy.

Our love still stands here.

11. Alex Atkins/12th/SPHS

Beautiful nighttime

A yellow, bright moon whispers

Enjoying the stars

12. Angie Aroche/10th/SPHS

Leaves were gold and brown,

Trees were left bare and broken,

Nature all around.

13. Maliik Cooper/12th/SPHS

The flawless blue sky

Stretching to eternity

Overseeing all

14. Eric St. Clair/12th/SPHS

Clear water flowing

It pours from the mountain top

Nurturing new life

15. Eric St. Clair/12th/SPHS

Sunbeams burst forward

Light encircles the hilltops

The sky warms us all

16. Reagan Ware/10th/SPHS

clear skies and warm sun,

fill the atmosphere and mood

everything brings peace

17. Nevada Lane/11th/SPHS

Beginning and end

But there’s always in between

So make sure it counts

Support for this project is provided in part by the Arts Council of York County Small Grants Program, the John and Susan Bennett Memorial Arts Fund of the Coastal Community Foundation of SC, Comporium Communications, and the SC Arts Commission, which received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.