Rainier Haiku Ginsha Poems

On Sunday, June 27, 2010, members of Seattle’s Rainier Haiku Ginsha read a selection of their poems for the national meeting of the Haiku Society of America at the Seattle Asian Art Museum. The poems were translated by the group, with suggestions from Michael Dylan Welch. Readers at the meeting were Teruko Chin, Kiyomi Erickson, Lily McMahan, Mitsuko Nakata, and Kyoko Tokuno. The Rainier Haiku Ginsha is a Japanese-language haiku group that was started in 1934 in Seattle by the Issei who had migrated to the United States. The group meets in Seattle on the first Saturday of each month. For further information, please contact Lily McMahan. See also Rainier Haiku Ginsha for a history of the organization and more selected poems in Japanese and English.

Miyoko

影連れて歩く若葉の上り坂                                 me and my shadow

kage tsurete aruku wakaba no noborizaka              share a walk up the hill—

                                                                                  spring greenery

Shoushi

秋光に眼閉じても開きても                                 brilliant light of autumn—

shukou ni manako tojitemo hirakitemo                  even with my eyes closed

                                                                                  as when they are open

Shoushi

パーテイの館つつみて牡丹雪                             party lights ablaze—

party no yakata tsutsumite botanyuki                     fleeces of falling snow

                                                                                  snugly wrap the house

Yuge

母の日に米寿で逝きし母思う                            Mother’s Day today—

haha no hi ni beijyu de yukishi  haha omou           fond memories of mother

                                                                                 passed away on her 88th

Yuge

名曲にワインかたむけ春の宵                            fine music

meikyoku ni wine katamuke haru no yoi                a sip of wine

                                                                                 spring’s early twilight

Yukiko

侘助を一輪活けて粋な部屋                                a single branch

Wabisuke wo ichirin ikete ikina heya                     of Wabisuke camellia—

                                                                                 the room is now chic

Saeko

地図広げ子の新居へと春の旅                           the map open

chizu hiroge ko no shinkyo eto haruno tabi           to our son’s new home—

                                                                                spring vacation

Fujiko

旅立つ娘遠ざかりゆく夏帽子                           daughter leaving on a trip—

tabidatsu ko toozakariyuku natsuboushi                our goodbyes go further away

                                                                                with her summer hat

Fujiko

緑陰に木洩れ日ゆるる茶庭かな                       sunbeam through the leaves

ryokuin ni komorebi yururu chaniwakana              trembling in green shade—

                                                                                serene tea garden

Teruko

新緑は一色ならず色重ね                                   spring green—

shinryoku wa hitoiro narazu irokasane                  each tree is unique

                                                                                in its own hue

Teruko

水抜かれ枯葉に埋む園の池                               its water drained—

mizu nukare kareha ni uzumu sono no ike            pond full of leaves

                                                                                to the rim

Miyuki

船行きて波遅れ来し春湖畔                               a boat passing by

fune yukite nami  okurekishi  haru kohan             waves following slowly—

                                                                                lakeside in spring

Sachiko

四月尽故郷に繋がる飛行雲                               April almost gone—

shigatsujin kuni ni tsunagaru hikougumo              a jet trail in the sky

                                                                                leads to my country

Mitsuko

産卵を終えし骸に木の葉散る                           spawning complete

sanran wo oeshi mukuro ni konoha chiru              dead salmon afloat downstream—

                                                                                maple leaves mourn and cover

Yuriko

虫の音や遠く近くの隅隅に                               the chirp of insects

mushi no ne ya tooku chikaku no sumizumi ni in the corners of the yard

                                                                                here and there

Yuriko

紅ちらり濃き葉のかげに寒椿                           a glimpse of red

beni chirari kokiha no kage ni kantsubaki             among dark shiny leaves . . .

                                                                                winter camellia

Kyoko

太古よりつながるいのち杉菜かな                   From time immemorial

taiko yori tsunagaru inochi sugina kana                an unbroken chain of life—

                                                                                horsetail fern!

Hisao

薄闇に明りを灯すはなみずき                           in dwindling light

usuyami ni akari wo tomosu hanamizuki              adding light and color

                                                                                dogwood flowers

Fumi

若者よ桜満開未来あれ                                       for you young men,

wakamono yo sakuramankai mirai are                 cherry blossoms in full bloom—

                                                                                promise of the future

Kiyomi

追憶や窓辺に寄りて日向ぼこ                           basking in the sun

tsuioku ya madobe ni yorite hinataboko               by the window . . .

                                                                                retrospection

Kiyomi

五月闇溶岩注ぐ太平洋                                       cruising on a dark May night—

satsukiyami yougan sosogu taiheiyou                   lava flows

                                                                                into the Pacific ocean

Hideko

陽の匂い風のささやき春隣                               smell of the sun

hi no nioi kaze no sasayaki haru tonari                 whisperings of the wind

                                                                                spring is almost here

Hideko

春光を水面に散らしせせらげる                       rays of spring

shunkou wo minamo ni chirashi seserageru         scatter light over water—

                                                                                the murmuring stream

Fuki

水溜めの氷一葉を抱き留めし                           frozen puddle—

miizutame no koori hitoha wo dakishimeshi         a single leaf

                                                                                in its fold