English Original
a friend's death ...
the maple leaves are falling
too early this year
Naomi Beth Wakan
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
一個朋友的死 ...
今年楓葉飄落
太早了
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
一个朋友的死 ...
今年枫叶飘落
太早了
Bio Sketch
Naomi Beth Wakan is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Nanaimo (2014–16) and the Federation of British Columbia Writer’s Inaugural Honorary Ambassador. She has published over fifty books. Her most recent book of essays, On the Arts, came out in 2020 (Shanti Arts). Her trilogy, The Way of Tanka, The Way of Haiku, and Poetry That Heals was published by Shanti Arts in 2019. Wakan is a member of The League of Canadian Poets, Haiku Canada, and Tanka Canada. She lives on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada, with her husband, the sculptor Elias Wakan.
L1 sets the theme and mood while Ls &3 not only add symbolic significance to the haiku, but also funtion like an authorial comment on the untimely death of the N's friend in L1.
ReplyDeleteAnd the haiku below could be read as a prequel to Naomi's:
tall summer grass
so dry it hums
Dad’s death day
Haiku Days of Remembrance, 2018
Robert Epstein