Two Haiku Sequences: An Akita Summer
by Masaya Saito
I
Homecoming
me, in the tick
of the pendulum
Hanging a goldfish bowl
old-age blotches
my father’s hand
This tatami
where a futon was spread
my mother lying dead
Household altar
a candle flame
within, a wick
Through the window
my father hoeing
darker and darker
That evening
waiting for my mother
a pumpkin on the wooden floor
Chill after a bath
the tick
of the pendulum
The shoji screen
from behind it,
his single word of reply
In moonlight
my palm
0
I’m tired
II
The thatched eave
out of its shade
walks my shadow
Sweltering sky
my feet crunching the gravel
across the graveyard
A drop of sweat
splashes
the gravestone
My hands together in prayer
now apart,
I begin to walk
This path
through the verdant shade
toward the edge
Crouching
I retie a shoelace
cicadas screeching
Footsteps
one by one
through the tunnel
Myself
shimmering in heat haze
I walk on
The deserted school
its window
reflects my face, ageing
Passing by
a lady holding a parasol
fist in its shade
Beyond the cliff
where I stand
a rainbow