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Tanka
The chill autumn fog
concealed the face of the moon;
Why then did I think
I would see you tonight when
you had never come before?
The moon's path is
perfectly predictable,
so why are you surprised?
Call it constancy:
everything changes.
Winter, like old age,
begins with snow and dwindles
to a dreary grey;
The longing for spring is as
strong as the desire for love.
Tercets
A spider dropped down,
dangling on its thread right here—
I'm not lonely now!
The praying mantis,
so green on my summer gate,
turns to autumn straw.
As the autumn sleeps,
the thing I miss the most is
the cicada's song.
We have herons here,
occassionally seen through
the curtain of snow.
A single dark strand
of her silken hair is like
a promise come true.
A storm of cherry petals
is the anthem of spring.
Luminous green light—
the dappled hill climbs away
from the town limits.
Fireflies disappear
like the dreams of men at dawn
in Xanadu Square.
Though we cannot see
the blossoms in the evening,
their scent reveals all.
Whispers in the willows...
telling tales
on a summer night.
The crickets singing
give no thought to the coming
of winter's season.
There is no stillness
in my restless, beating heart
when you are near me.
Long have I waited
for your footsteps on the floor
approaching my door.
Two friends in a garden,
white chrysanthemums and dew
and conversation. |
