Awakening Birds poetry book at Cork University Hospital

In September 2015, Orlagh O’Brien and Tess Leak took their collaboration Haiku Island Press into Cork University Hospital’s Renal Department to begin the research phase of their book-making project funded by Cork City Council and supported by Arts Officer Edelle Nolan.

They worked alongside ten patients receiving treatment to create a small collection of haiku inspired by their journeys to the hospital during the week. Originally from Japan, haiku are short, three-lined poems often evoking the natural world. Staff also contributed ideas for poems and Tess and Orlagh were delighted with the level of engagement and talent of the patients as well as the warm and enthusiastic welcome into the unit they received from Joanne Lyons, Clinical Nurse Manager.

Haiku Island Press are hand-making a booklet of the collection of haiku poems on-site in the waiting room of the department this October, with a view to developing a more substantial book of a larger collection next year.

awakening birds
dark skies, bright lights of
towns twinkling ahead

(A haiku made collaboratively by staff and Haiku Island Press)