My previous post had a haiku within a pictorial context. Most haiku can stand alone, drawing the reader into the moment. Some are made even richer though by knowing something of the background to the poem, whether it be the life of the poet or the times it was written in.

Consider this one by the 18th Century Japanese poet, Yagi Shokyu-ni.

The "forget-me" has bloomed,
but ah!
I cannot forget old days together.

It is a beautiful moment of recognition and recollection. But if I told you that it was written on the anniversary of her husband's death, which it was, there is yet another level of meaning, bitter-sweet as it is.

Sometimes it is good to know just a little more.