Haiku About the Moon and Stars
In moon haiku, the moon appears most often as something you can handle. K.A. Cummings writes of an autumn night when HANDS REACHING DOWN FOR WATER SCOOP UP THE MOON
, so the moon is in the water and the water is in the hands. Colin W Campbell takes the same reflection and lets it go. The winter moon is QUIET AS SLOW MOVING WATER
and TURNS TO QUICKSILVER
. One poem catches the moon in a cup; the other lets it pour.
M.P. Carver measures the moon in fruit. It HANGS LOW AS A RIPENING PEACH
and will soon be plucked from a CHARCOAL SKY
. The poem is titled Late Autumn Night, and the season is in the sentence. The moon is nearly ripe, and the harvest is imminent. The picture is exact and a little eerie, and the verb pluck gives the night sky a harvest of its own.
Alexis Ellyse addresses the moon directly. WANING CRESCENT MOON
, the poem begins, and it ends with the line SMALLER, SMALLER STILL
. The repetition makes you watch it shrink. The tone is affectionate, and the double smaller is the poem’s only decoration.
Donald Clermont gives the moon a task. The speaker says to sleep into the night, because THE MOON WILL STAY AWAKE
, and the final phrase, SILENT SELFLESSLY
, makes it a guardian. Robert Witmer uses the same light for love. OUR LOVE TREMBLES
, and the moonlight trembles on the river, so that the water carries the feeling.
Why the moon, and why autumn
In the traditional calendar, the moon is a season word for autumn. These poems keep the connection loose. Cummings and Carver set the moon in autumn, Campbell in winter, and Witmer in no season at all.
45 poems
AUTUMN NIGHTHANDS REACHING DOWN FOR WATERSCOOP UP THE MOON
Issue #1, page 107
WINTER MOON SHINING
WINTER MOON SHININGQUIET AS SLOW MOVING WATERTURNS TO QUICKSILVER
Issue #2, page 81
LATE AUTUMN NIGHT
THE MOON HANGSLOW AS A RIPENING PEACH,SOON IT WILL BE PLUCKEDFROM A CHARCOAL SKY.
Issue #13, page 51
LUNA
WANING CRESCENT MOON,SILENTLY SLIMMING YOUR SHAPE.SMALLER, SMALLER STILL
Issue #5, page 49
THE MOON
SLEEP INTO THE NIGHTTHE MOON WILL STAY AWAKESILENT SELFLESSLY
Issue #11, page 101
OUR LOVE TREMBLESMOONLIGHTON THE RIVER
Issue #5, page 109
METEOR SHOWERTHE ELUSIVE PROMISEOF A FIRST KISS
Issue #2, page 73
SO CLOSE THE MOONEARTH'S CHILD LOOMING LARGESO SMALL MY REACH
Issue #5, page 69
LOPSIDED MOON...THE DOCTOR TELLS US IT'S TIMEONLY TIME
Issue #1, page 59
TEA
SHE DRANK EVENING TEASTARS IN CUP HER SWEETNESSMOON HER CREAM
Issue #3, page 91
DARK BRANCHED SILHOUETTESPLAY HIDE AND SEEK WITH THE MOONLANTERN TO THE EARTH
Issue #1, page 91
TRANSPARENT HEART
YOUR TRANSPARENCYUNDER THE MOON'S BRIGHTEST LIGHTMAKES MY HEART QUIVER
Issue #1, page 99
Show all 45 poems
STARRY NIGHT
AFTER A LONG NIGHTSHE'S MAKING HER PRESENCE KNOWN…THE TRANSIT OF VENUS
Issue #2, page 63
STARS AND OWLS
STARS AND OWLSGROW FATBENEATH A STARVING MOON
Issue #2, page 87
EVER MOVING CLOUDSOBSCURE THE NIGHT OF FULL MOONSTILL, DEEP MOODS SHIVER
Issue #3, page 31
CHAOTIC CLOUDSCRASHING STARS AND GALAXIES—THE UNIVERSE AT PEACE
Issue #4, page 29
HAIKU (YOU)
LIKE THE MOON MIGHT COMEI SLOSH AROUND HEAVILYA SWELL ON MY LIPS
Issue #6, page 67
QUARTER MOONNEAR A RIVER OF CLOUDSBIRDSONG
Issue #6, page 83
WINDOW SILL
WINDOW SILLSPRING MOONLIGHT GATHERSON THE DUST
Issue #7, page 71
GRIEF
MOONLIGHT ACROSS LAKEREFLECTION OF MEMORIESTWINKLING STARS COMFORT
Issue #8, page 61
SAND DUNES CRESTINGSILENTLY THE MOONLIGHTWALKS ON WATER
Issue #8, page 95
SPRINKLES
MOONLIGHT REFLECTIONSILLUMINATE MEMORIESSPRINKLES OF LIFE STARS
Issue #9, page 49
ORION'S FIXED GAZE
ORION'S FIXED GAZEPIERCES THE DARKNESS-OUTRIGGER NIGHT WATCH
Issue #9, page 59
FULL MOON, SLOW TO RISEMOUNTAINS SCREAM SHADES OF CORALROARING ITS DANCE.
Issue #9, page 73
RUSTLING LEAVESPUMPKIN PIEWITH MOON DOLLOP
Issue #10, page 27
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
YOUR FATHER FORGOTSO I GO OUT LATE AT NIGHTTHE MOON UNDERSTANDS
Issue #10, page 97
A LONE GOOSEFLYING MADLY;THE MOON IS PALE AND MILKY.
Issue #11, page 89
STARS
STARS, BRIGHT FINGERTIPSANGELS PRESSED AGAINST THE GLASSOF THE DISPLAY-CASE
Issue #12, page 25
SILVER MOONA SNAIL TRAIL LEADSTO THE STRAWBERRY PATCH
Issue #12, page 27
PARTIAL ECLIPSE
HALF-MOON SUNDIVIDING SHADOWSWITH CRESCENTS OF LIGHT
Issue #12, page 87
LOOK BETWEEN THE STARSAT THE WINKING DARK MATTERKEEPING ITS SECRETS
Issue #13, page 19
SEDUCTION UNDERNEATH MOONLIGHT
MY VIRGIN PALMS, TAINTED.TAINTED BY YOUR VIRGIN SKIN...IT WAS MEANT TO BE...
Issue #13, page 32
INFINITE STORM
THE SNOWFLAKE STARS FALLAS THE UNIVERSE STREAMS BYAND WETS MY WARM FACE.
Issue #13, page 40
FLUTTER
BEDRIDDEN—THE WINGS OF THE BUTTERFLYBRUSHING AGAINST THE MOON
Issue #14, page 9
THE MOON
USE YOUR EYES, POND SNAIL,NOT YOUR IMAGINATION.THE MOON IS THE MOON.
Issue #14, page 10
TEAR
POLYESTER STARS,LYCRA SKY, A NYLON MOONSTRETCH, TEAR, AS WE GROW.
Issue #14, page 14
SHY MOON
ALWAYS ON DISPLAY,MUCH AS I WOULD, TONIGHT'S MOONCOWERS BEHIND CLOUDS
Issue #14, page 40
TRANQUILITY
THE MOONS REFLECTIONCASTS A CELESTIAL SHADOWOVER THE CALM BAY.
Issue #15, page 34
HUMMINGBIRD
BEAK TILTED TOWARDS MOONTHE BRANCH DOES NOT KNOW HER WEIGHTNOR I, MY OWN.
Issue #16, page 46
I WATCH
I WATCHMY LOVE WALKHOME, THE MOONA HOOK STRETCHINGTOWARDS HER LIPS.
Issue #16, page 55
CLOUDS
SOMETIMES THE CLOUDS SMILE,CURVE AND CRESCENT WITH THE MOON.SOMETIMES THE CLOUDS SWOON.
Issue #16, page 56
THERE IS ALWAYS LIGHT
LOVE IS ETERNALTHOUGH THE MOON WAXES AND WANESTHERE IS ALWAYS LIGHT
Issue #18, page 14
MOON TIGHTROPE CABLE
MOON TIGHTROPE CABLESHAMBLING AND SLIDING TREETOPSLEAFY APPLAUSE
Issue #18, page 26
GEESE FLEW SOUTH BY NIGHT
SILVER ARROW PIERCEDTHE SORRY MOON AND VANISHEDINTO BRILLIANCE
Issue #18, page 30
ITS PETALS
MOON FLOWER--A SENSE OF HOPEIN ITS PETALS
Issue #18, page 46
Questions readers ask
Do the stars get poems of their own?
They appear, but the moon is the more popular subject. Poets here tend to treat the moon as a single object with a personality, which is easier to put into a short poem than a sky full of points of light.
Does the moon always mean something?
Not always. Sometimes it is a lantern, a peach or a shape on water, and the plain description is the point.
More themes to read
Evening and NightAutumnRivers and LakesLonelinessLoveAll themes
Last reviewed November 2026. Poems are the work of the poets credited and link to their pages in the original issues.