A Leash on Ginkgo Leaves

A yellow leaf fell and settled on the leash. The person didn't brush it off, and kept walking, listening only to the ginkgo leaves underfoot.

Wet Cherry Blossom Path, Morning

By the water where the drizzle has stopped, a white sky spreads across the wet path. Trying not to step on the petals, I stood there a long while.

Sea Aster

To you, the gulls on the breakwater don't look my way. Only the sea asters sway in the wind.

A Petal Stuck to a Shoe

Outside the cafe window, nine in the morning. The coffee cups set between the two of them are just as they were, and I look on from outside the window, like someone who has never sat in that seat. It was this same hour, that day too. This morning a cherry petal I met at the subway entrance stuck to my shoe and walked a long way with me. It was awkward to brush off, so I let it be. All the way down the stairs, that petal trembled on the top of my foot. Going down the stairs with the petal still on my shoe, I saw the same petal stuck to the shoes of the person standing ahead of me. We had come from different entrances, and yet it was the same petal. That person went down the stairs without brushing it off either. Around the time the subway doors closed, the cherry tree outside the window swayed in the wind. A few leaves struck the glass and slid down. The steam from the coffee cups slowly faded away.

To you, I've come out to the night sea and I'm retying my shoelaces. The wind is strong, and even with my head bowed, the sound of the waves brushes over my whole body. Even if I call your name like this, you won't hear. Still, tying my laces in a double knot, I hold close the wish to call it once more. I walk on sand the waves wash up over and erase. With every step, the place I left disappears a little. Have you, too, ever given someone's name to the wind, the way I do.

Bag Handles at Midday

The midday sun touched the handles of the bag and warmed them, and the dry plastic gave a small rustle. One handle was held and stretched long, the other was doubled over, creased deep. The two of them pushed and pulled the same bag, twice each. The fingertips of the one holding the heavy side were pressed white, and the fingers of the one holding the light side hung at the very end of the handle. Over those handles, one person's hand was slowly coming down.