Ubuyama-mura

Corrugated metal roofs, springtime flowers,
Miniature cars in old short sheds.

Cars slide past village and industrial trucks,
Kids play the street: matching yellow hats, school packs.

Butterflies, birds venture tirelessly,
The farmer looks on.

Heat of summer in the air, stillness,
Mamushi snake nipping at your heels.

Birth Mountain village.

The winter of frozen toes,
Seeking kotatsu.

Begging for her warmth,
Suffering for her warmth.

Loudspeakers calling,
Meetings, then speeches.

Desolate branches and the evergreen bamboo
Sprouting.

Patches of life, bleeding oil,
Stations of gas, shochu.

Hours of numbness, yearning,
The lonely soul.