Last year at this time, I had imagined I would be in France now, but here I am still in Japan.
I still have a Pezens-shaped cavity in my heart, but I feel so lucky to be in Japan. It means I get to experience the beautiful seasons for a second time. Are the seasons more stunning or particular or well-celebrated anywhere else in the world?
紅葉 kōyō is on its way out. The momiji were stunning on Mt. Takao, which I got to climb. Now they're shedding. The Ginkgo trees lasted a bit longer, but they are balding, too. Things are looking a little more drab. But I was interested to learn that they are sometimes called "maidenhair trees," and that Japanese name of Ginkgo nuts actually means "silver apricot." So, here is my seasonal ode:
Silver Apricots
In Autumn the maidenhair trees
stand like candles without a puff of wind
tall, tapered, unwavering.
October brings out their "silver apricots"
that hang like tiny Christmas globes
or pale, sunless cherries
until they fall.
November scatters the maiden's golden foliage.
Each leaf is a priceless uchiwa
distributed by a benevolent hand,
or maybe it's an early snow?
In the park, kids pile it into heaps and
chant, "Gu-to-pa-de-kimemasho-o!"
(Let's get into teams by paper or by rocks!)
and so the blizzard begins.
December means chawanmushi –
Creamy egg custard, with
a single slice of fish cake,
a sliver of shiitake mushroom,
sliced green onion,
a morsel of chicken,
and, if you're lucky,
a gleaming jelly-bean-green ginnan
(Ginkgo nut),
the final Easter egg.
Spring comes, winter is gone
I might have forgotten
the flaming maidenhair,
the Christmas globes, the cherries,
the burnished fans, the gilded snow
but for
that impressive
unforgettable
"silver apricot" scent
Comments
Post a Comment