tsuyu naranu
kokoro o hana ni
okisomete
kaze fuku goto ni
monoomoi zo tsuku
it is not a dewdrop
it is only this old heart
settling on a flower
but now it quakes and trembles
at each new breeze every hour
Ki no Tsurayuki
(872–945)
from
'Only Companion —
Japanese Poems
of Love and Longing'
translated by Sam Hamill
