Josan No Miya
She is a fierce kitten leaping in sunlight
Towards the swaying boughs.
She is a gust of wind,
Bending in parallel curves the boughs of the willow-tree.
An Oiran and Her Kamuso
Gilded hummingbirds are whizzing
Through the palace garden,
Deceived by the jade petals
Of the Emperor’s jewel-trees.
Two Ways of Love
The wind half blows her robes,
That subside
Listlessly
As swaying pines.
The wind tosses hers
In circles
That recoil upon themselves:
How should I love—as the swaying or tossing wind?
Kurenai-ye or “Red Picture”
She glances expectantly
Through the pine avenue,
To the cherry-tree summit
Where her lover will appear.
Faint rose anticipation colours her,
And sunset;
She is a cherry-tree that has taken long to bloom.