shoot them off—live shells—with a bang, by electricity,

just when they’re feeling A-1

they’ll really think they’re on the

River of the Three Ways, huh

us we’ll have had lots of practice

we won’t be scared at all

I wouldn’t be a bit flustered

say, have one of those sandwiches

that hill over there—really drizzling, eh?

like a picture in blue on a porcelain

that fellow will make a good backdrop, huh.

COW

An ayrshire cow

playing, rubbing her horns in the grass,

in the misty soil,

at her back the pulp factory fires

scorch the night clouds.

over low dunes

the sea booms

a brass moon

like you could scoop up and swallow

so the cow feels pretty good

playing now

tapping the fence with her horns.

FLOATING WORLD PICTURE: SPRING IN THE KITAGAMI MOUNTAINS

1

Nobody at the edge of the firepit

snowboots and jute leggings,

white birch flaming

jetting out sour hot sap

—a child sings the kite song

skinning badgers.

housepillars gleaming with soot

—like shaped with stone axes—

the sheer ceiling

full of the blue smoke of breakfast

—vault of a temple—

one shaft of sunlight shooting down and

all is at the bottom in that

sensual beam of light.

Spring—at the chilly horsebarn

glimmer of dry hay and snow

yearning for sunny hills

the horses stamp their hooves.

2

The willow puts out honey flowers

birds flow over hill after hill

horses hurry:

hot-breatht Arab

glistening light-bodies thoroughbred

invisible cuneiform wind

in the stiff gloomy limbs of the walnut—

a dog rustles in bamboo grass.

heavy work horse

flashing his tufty tail

like a monstrous lizard

navigating in the sun

horses one by one coming,

chewing at the edge of the marl,

climbing along the misty run of snowmelt

under a malachite sky

—bright noisy market—

being led to the

stud inspection center.

ORDERS

The minus-1 Infantry Company

Leaves bivouac at 1 AM

From the present row of pine advancing

in a southerly direction

Over there,

That

There uh

That black tree standing alone, proceed

To set your course by the green star visible

two fingers to the right of the top

of it

Toward the headwaters,

And attack and destroy the glow of the

lights from the town.

Leader of Platoon number 1

You can swallow down your great sleepiness

While marching.

Now at the environs of the municipality

In the swamp running along the edge of the

roadside trees

Waterlily and Junsai

And swampfire flickering on and off.

No need to bother about that.

Very well. You all understand?

End of orders.

DISTANT LABOR

Beyond the pampas-grass flowers

and the dark grove

a new sort of wind is blowing

—through dazzling wrinkly cloud fretwork

and spring sun

with a shiver of strange odors.

And from the hill behind the empty creek

and the barely rising black smoke

of the tileworks

a big cheerful racket.

—listening in the farmers fields

it seems pleasant enough work all right