留守番の猫は主の音を待つ
るすばん の ねこ は あるじ の おと を まつ
Unknown sound
perhaps a strong purr
we know he is home.
This is a Haiku written by my cats.
They can never see me when I return home,
but they know the sound of my bike.
They don’t know it is a bike,
but they know I am home, waiting at the door.
私は猫を三匹飼っています。この俳句はその猫のお話です。
私が家に帰った時、みんなは私の姿が見えません。
でも、私のバイクの音が分かります。
私のバイクを知りません。
でも、みんなは、ドアの傍で私を待っています。
ロドニー
For this past Thanksgiving, I went to visit my Uncle in Virginia. This was the first Thanksgiving that I spent away from my parents and brother so it was a very different experience for me. Although I missed my family a lot, I had a blast with my Uncle and his family. He has four kids so it always seemed like his house was active and full of energy. It’s been a while since I’ve lived in a house with so many people but I loved being in that kind of atmosphere. They are extremely into sports (especially football) so I played a lot of games outside with my cousins and it was a lot of fun. It’s been about three years since I last saw them so I also really enjoyed catching up and learning about their lives now. With all the good food and company, I couldn’t have asked for a better Thanksgiving. I was very thankful to have had the opportunity to be around family and loved ones and hopefully I can do it again next year. More to come…
子の絵載せ「こうのとり号」夏空へ
Child art carrying
Kounotori launches
into summer sky.
こ の え のせ 「こうのとり ごう」 なつぞら へ
尾池和夫（おいけかずお）
足が楽なので、私は、いつも、踵の低いサンダルを履いています。
しかし、先日、ヒールのある靴を買いました。２足買いました。
今日、初めて、新しい靴を履きました。
歩いているうちに、だんだん、踵（かかと）が痛くなってきました。
気になって、まっすぐ前を向いて歩けません。
ふと、前を見ると、サンタクロースがいました。
ブーツを脱いで、嬉しそうに座っています。
このサンタさんは、大げさに振る舞っているのではありません！
このブログを書いている私も、今、喜びに浸っています。
素足です。窮屈から開放された幸せを味わっています！
日没や自然の花火隠れ行く
にちぼつ や しぜん の はなび かくれ いく
Sunsets
changing soon disappearing
nature’s own fireworks.
The sunsets are always beautiful but also unique.
Some are cloudy and some are bright.
Like all beautiful things they are soon gone.
日没は、いつも美しくて、それぞれが独特です。
たまに曇って、たまに明るく輝いています。
美しい物は全てすぐに消えて行きます。
I love going to watch the sunset at Ala Moana Beach Park. Every day they are very beautiful but at the same time they are never the same. Sometimes there are more clouds or because of the vog the colors are much brighter. Just like in life, the beautiful sunsets like all beautiful things are only with us for a very short time.
私は、アラモアナビーチパークへ、夕日を見に行くのが好きです。ここの夕日の美しさは、いつ行っても変わることはありません。しかし一方、同時刻の夕日でも、一日として、同じ夕日はありません。普段より雲の多い日、あるいは、ハワイ島のキラウェア火山が作りだすスモッグのある日は、夕日の色が、いつもより明るくなります。全ての美しいものがそうであるように、夕日も、私達の前に、ほんの少しの時間だけ姿を現します。
ジム
The season for fruits are strange this year in Hawaii. The mango trees are confused. Normally,the trees that didn’t fruit in the summer, will fruit in December. This is our winter crop. But this year some of the same trees that already had summer fruit, are bearing mangoes again. Not only are they with fruit, they also have flowers, which means that they will have fruit again in March. Flowers and fruit on the same tree at the same time! The few trees that had an abundant supply during summer sit bare with no flowers. The poor trees are confused by our changes in weather, or maybe they are making up for the lack of abundance during the summer. Many people complained that their mango tree didn’t fruit as many, this past season therefore not being able to give any away to mango hungry friends. What will it be like next summer?
八の間に涼風とどく登り窯
Topmost chamber
fresh wind blows through
the old stone kiln.
はちのま に りょうふう とどく のぼりがま
The original version of this poem uses the word noborigama, which refers to a traditional Japanese style of kiln built on a hillside with many different chambers.
尾池和夫（おいけかずお）
珈琲に朝日の差した床の皺
コーヒー に あさひ の さした とこ の しわ
Morning light spills
upon the crumpled sheets
coffee slurping.
NACOS tips for writing English haiku
When considering the juxtaposition for your haiku, remember that your goal is to paint a vivid, yet incomplete picture. The reader will fill in the missing details, but the details you provide should play well with each other and resonate, thus creating a definite emotion or image.
A further note on translated haiku –
Often, to make the same concept sound good in different languages, a different approach is required. I translated my own poem into Japanese with Michiko’s help, and in so doing found that it only really worked if the meaning were changed slightly. Yet, the feeling remains the same. For some of the translations of Oike-san’s poetry on this site, I have had to do something similar. Even if you don’t see yourself translating anything, still consider how our language plays a role in shaping our ideas as we communicate them.
Frustrated by Michiko: Illustrated by Michiko
唄を口ぐさんでいると歌詞のなかに「せきれいの翼…」という言葉がでてきました。せきれいとは孔雀や鳳凰にも似たなんとも美しい響きの言葉です。しかし、実はどんな鳥か知らずに歌っていたことに思い当たりました。
手近かにある和英辞典でせきれいを引いてみるとwagtailとあり、尾を上下に振るところからその名がついたもので、更にBirds of North Americaという鳥の本によると、ワグテイルは種類に依っては夏期にアラスカの西端に飛来するが、主としてアジア大陸の沿岸に棲むとあります。
挿絵をみると長さ17、8センチ、腹部が黄色以外はどちらかと言えば地味な鳥で、孔雀のような華麗さとは縁がなさそうです。広辞苑をひいてみると漢字では鳥に昔（せき）と令（れい）と組み合わせた字で、どうやら和製漢字のようです。スズメ目の小鳥で、いしたたきとも呼ばれ、おしどりと同様に夫婦の仲の良さを象徴する鳥とあります。
この唄は題も知らず、歌詞もうろ覚えです。何かの機会に全曲に巡り会えばいいのですが。
膝のうえ綿毛の温もり濡れた鼻
ひざ の うえ わたげ の ぬくもり ぬれた はな
Fluffy white
warm cotton ball on lap
wet nose.
I have a little dog in Kansas that is small, white, fluffy and has a dark black, wet nose.
カンザスの実家に、子犬がいます。
この小さくて、フワフワした白い犬は、黒い鼻をしています。鼻は、濡れています。
Ben （べん）
