A renku's first verse (and only its first verse) has a strong internal break. It is called the hokku. Look at how a dash signals a break in rhythm and image in our sample renku:
spring fever —
I open another bottle
of hand sanitizer
—Nicholas M. Sola
The first verse (and only the first) is a microcosm of the entire renku (which is a microcosm of the universe): leaping from image A to image B. When the poet Masaoka Shiki created the concept of a "haiku" separate from renku, he based its structure on the two-part hokku that begins a renku. This is why poets of haiku must be careful with their three-lined verses in renku. They are in the habit of always using a hard break—a hard habit to "break"!
Only the first verse should sound and look like a haiku. All the others should flow fairly smoothly without a jarring break, for example:
stocking up
on cholocate eggs
to eat alone
—Juliet Seer Pazera
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