"Haiku should be written as swiftly as a woodcutter fells a tree or a swordsman leaps at a dangerous enemy." Basho, the father of haiku poetry, was of samurai stock himself and so wrote these words from experience. Haiku originated during the time of the samurai, a time when everyone realized that to speedily draw a sword or hit a target with an arrow required a lot of practice. It is just the same with haiku. If you want to hit your target when you write a haiku, like the samurai you will have to do some warming-up exercises. Haiku - one breath poetry not only provides exercises and pointers for would-be haiku poets, it also encourages people everywhere to share their experiences in this way. Haiku writing isn't just for poets, though, it's for anyone who has stopped to look at a great sunset, a weird and wonderful lizard, a striking flower, or anything that made them pause and wonder ... and marvel. Book jacket.