Above: Yokoyama Taikan

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From Snow

by Maxence Fermine

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Winter wind

— a monk, walking in the wood

ISSA

Yuko’s father was a Shinto monk. He lived on the island of Hokkaido, in the north of Japan, where the winter was long and hard. He had taught his son the importance of faith, respect for the power of the elements, and a love of nature. He also taught him the art of writing haiku.

One day, in the month of April 1884, Yuko reached his seventeenth birthday. In Kyushu, in the south of Japan, the first cherry trees were beginning to bloom. In the north, the sea was still frozen.

His boyhood was nearing its end. The time had come for him to choose a vocation. For generations now, the Akita family had either entered the religious life or the army. But Yuko had no desire for either.

On the morning of his birthday, Yuko and his father were walking along by the river, “Father,” he said, “I want to become a poet.”

The monk wrinkled his brow in a way that was barely perceptible and yet revealed a deep disappointment. The sun was reflected in the ripples of the water. A moon-fish glided past the birch trees and disappeared under the wooden bridge.

“Poetry is not a profession. It is a way of passing the time. Poemsare like water. Like this river.”

Yuko lowered his gaze to the quiet, flowing water. Then he turned towards his father and said:

“That is just what I want to do. To learn to watch the passing of time.”

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Snow: A Novel by Maxence Fermine HERE