Pebbles of Poetry
翻訳者 Translator
１

詩の礫

Jeﬀrey Angles

２

詩の礫「Ladder」 Ayamachi Hirakawa

３ 詩の礫「Shelter」

Yoko Negami

Tomoyuki endo

Tomoyuki endo

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和合亮一@wago2828

evacuation area, but things have calmed down, so I have returnedworld of hurt now.

T h e e a r t h q u a ke h i t . I s p e n t s o m e t i m e i n a n e m e r g e n c y

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Donʼ t like what Iʼ ve done to you, eh? Bring it on, youʼ re in for a

We sweat. A man says, “Theyʼ re working at the electrical plant

without sleeping or resting. They only eat twice a day and nap into go to work. Thanks everyone for worrying about me. Your

the hallway. All the workersʼ families are terribly worried.” Iʼ ve

words of encouragement are greatly appreciated.

started to wish I could see my grandmother who died a decadeago.

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和合亮一@wago2828

thinking about things have changed.

Hirano, Namie, Odaka, Haramachi. Fields, towns, sea. From

Today is the sixth day since the disaster. My ways of looking at and

The myth of absolute safety was not so absolute after all. Ōkuma,

和合亮一@wago2828

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your clock and mine are still both one minute behind. The

any gasoline in it. I sweat a cold sweat over my spirit.

us? What are we trying to hide? What does the spring try to hide

Being resilient in silence.

Burning in red,

downstairs, and just run to the communal corridor of our house.

I am afraid to turn on the music in my headphones, to watch a

become a literary proposition for me. It seems to me that theteeth - because Iʼ m afraid to miss the sounds of approaching

deprivations and overruns, is identical to the absurdity of myAt the bus stop, I am still not onboard the bus. That is because
shadows of three birds tremble within my mind and yours as well.

The masks cover us, we canʼ t speak out. What is trying to hide

Finally, N-san hung up. I got in my car, even though there wasnʼ t

by another mask? Why does the spring force us this silence? We

The disaster of this earthquake.

pray for the end.

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和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

analog clocks, hourglasses, water clocks, sundials, wind clocks,

Now is the time to write poetry, to bet your life on the Japanese language. You, my poet

I sweat a cold sweat over my spirit.

With the mask on, something appears from the eastern sk y.

still be set to 2:47 p.m., March 11?

poetry, I beg you for the sake of those countless sad souls swallowed by the black wave at

The clocks in eastern Japan are one minute behind. Digital clocks,

Highway 6, I can see the light of the reactors at night.

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and even the clocks regulating our own stomachs. Could they all

The shadows of 11,438 people (You, my poet friends throughout Japan! I call out to you!

With the mask on, yesterday disappears into the western sky.

I thought I would drive along the dark, nighttime roads to the sea.

Self-restraint. Silence.

friends who have worked so hard to hone your skills, I beg you for poetry, please write

Being resilient to silence.
Praying for the ending.

Sunset. Things forgotten.
remembering something,

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alone. Sharing. Each one of us.

You feel like you have all the sounds in the world on your side.

Itʼ s nice to have favorite songs.

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leave home. They said, “ You go on your own.” I choose mycold sweat over our spirits.

overpasses. I hear the passenger behind me. “People might hatenighttime ﬁelds of Fukushima.

“Medical Collapse” , “Bamboo Shoots out on the market” , “Theriver, a birdsong, a wind. Listening for the sound of a passing

is being washed. Just now, the washing machine is talking to me

And the clock at Fukushima station is still stopped. We sweat a

I get on the bus. It goes by several empty parks, gas stations, andus if they hear weʼ re from Fukushima.” “People might refuse us if“Self-restraint ” , “New clothes for the Spring” , “Buyout ” ,If so, then I should go, at the speed of anger through the dark,

Number of Infections Increasing” , “New Colors for Spring” ,we tell them Fukushimaʼ s our home.” I donʼ t turn around. We

Information af ter information, like an arrow. Toying with thehavenʼ t done anything wrong. A break in the clouds.

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Radiation is falling. It is a quiet night.

smartphone, as a result, the convulsion. Silence.

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a father, arenʼ t I the one who is supposed to make the decisions?

have not put on my pre-earthquake self even once.

rate, wonʼ t spring come to Fukushima one minute late?

Where are you going, you coward? Look up “helpless” in the

We should talk about what to do with what we are facing, and try

My family evacuated before me. There was a call from my son. As

I put on a suit for the ﬁrst time in ages. Since the earthquake, I

If so, then my clock and yours are both one minute behind. At thisItʼ s spring as if the silence is scolded loudly by another silence.

The devil is pressing his face against the front glass and smiling.
dictionary, and youʼ ll ﬁnd your name.

to light our hearts in this silence.

Listening to the app on my phone. Listening to the sound of a

trains or the hustle and bustle of the city. After a while, I enjoy the
bonﬁre. Living in a the world only of sounds, I think of the spring“No Entry”

Is there any meaning in harming us to this extent?

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Yes, I am angry. I am really angry.

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on a scrap of paper. Such sadness, the day before the earthquake.

behind is too far behind, isnʼ t it? If so … How can we turn it back?

In my chest pocket, I ﬁnd a thousand-yen bill and a note written

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All of us, all of you, together we will turn it back. One minute

Shut the hell up, move, get the hell out of my way, Iʼ m gonna

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so, then what is the meaning of that period “after the fact” ? Is

moving into death? What right does birth and death have to

The meaning of all things is probably determined after the fact. If
there any meaning there at all?

For what reason is life born into this world, and why does it leave,
exist? By what right are destruction and rebirth wrought?

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water. One singing the wind.

wind, if you have the strength to rule this planet, give us your

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trying to teach us anything, then what can we possibly have leftreport” is ﬁled. If no report is ﬁled, is a missing person who hasnʼ t

What could this earthquake be tr ying to teach us? If it ʼ s not
to believe?

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Radiation is falling. It is a quiet, quiet night.

Missing people become missing only once a “missing personʼ s

I donʼ t know. This one extra minute is too much for us to handle.

the sky, get some payback, smash the wind, get some payback,

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I was in line for three hours at the supermarket. After they let us

lady was crouched down, looking none too energetic. She told

Empty streets with lots of noises.

some white rice, and some yogurt from the shelf for her.

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wash our hair, hands, and face. We donʼ t have any water to wash

alone.” “Shall I take you home?” “I live nearby.”

We were told that when we come back in from outside, we should
ourselves.

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beginning to bloom. My mask is on the wrong position.

silence grow.

I asked the old lady. “Shall I call your family?” She told me, “I live

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giving the lure a go at this very pond. The two of us learning by example as we cast

Fukushima.

the moment the disaster really began for me.

catch anything. Still, my son and I were happy just to cast our rods. How can you

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ever y thing, the threat of the moment that is the present.

shelves lean at an angle. I put them one by one onto the bookshelf. Even books turnﬁelds of Fukushima. For the ﬁrst time, I discover the real meaning

A drop of tears fallen. The cheeks swollen. The sky.

over on the screen. The present baring its fangs.

the city of Kesennuma. You were also looking for eight of your missing relatives in

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和合亮一@wago2828

A black wave, swallowing ever y thing, completely covering
ever y thing. Hundreds, no, thousands of times … The clips

shoulder. I quickly ask, “What … What is that?” It is the true face ofthe disastrous quake that struck us.

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used to live. They say thatʼ s because no one wants to go into thelooked at the screen and wept, “Donʼ t abandon the cit y of

I hear that no supplies have reached Minamisōma, the city where I
city. Please save Minamisōma.

At the emergency evacuation shelter, a young man in his twenties

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my homeland. My homeland is everything to me.

been predicting all along may be on us soon. I ran to the bottom

What does your homeland represent to you? I will not abandon

More shaking. A very big quake. The big aftershocks they have

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We sweat a cold sweat over our spirits.

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abnormalities in our health. If we turn the word “immediately”

food be gone? Will our hearts be gone? I am the only one in the

all the clocks in eastern Japan remain one minute behind.

familyʼ s health.

apartment.

washed onto the shores of Minamisanriku, the same place I used
to like to go to from time to time to get away from the heat.

that belong to some police task force. Theyʼ re all on their way tothe city of Fukushima, one after another. Theyʼ re replacements.”

as an August in Fukushima. We sweat a cold sweat. It is Augustsmooth out the wrinkles in my shirt, I ﬁnd the dark power ofhere.

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turn to face my suit on its hanger. There is no one before me, but it hasdoor. I put my jacket in the ﬁrst bag. I hang it up. I put my pants in the second

waiting for a person to climb inside. Oh, silent one who is not here! Arerinse my hair in the shower. It is broken so the water is cold. Then I scrub my face

On a certain day of a certain month, I go home. I take my shoes oﬀ just inside the

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radiation will get in.” I received word from a younger friend of mine

disappeared. Aftershocks.

know tells me, “There wonʼ t be any aﬀect at all on our bodies.”

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the same way that we did up before all this.

public sauna when evening came. Several tough guys wereSeveral tough guys were sitting there in the heat, their minds

Yesterday, I opened the windows slightly … Someone said, “Thene x t day, it came back on. Ne x t, the bath it self broke andwho has taken refuge in Chiba. “Howʼ s the radiation?” A reporter I

We sweat a cold sweat. Not knowing what else to do, I went to thesitting there in the considerable heat, a cold sweat covering their

Another younger friend calls. “Thereʼ s no work anymore.”

The bath is broken. In the evenings, I go to the public sauna.
covered in a cold sweat. They are sweating. One man says,“Suppose the birds are dead under all that radioactivity in thesky.” The room where we are is horribly hot.

My ritual is to take my street clothes oﬀ just inside the door, put themin bags, and close the mouths of the bags up tight. Why do I do that?

ﬁst, slam your ﬁst into your ﬁst, slam your ﬁst into your ﬁst, hit it, hit it, hit it,

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canʼ t burn the bodies. The only way to get rid of them is to put

Tomioka gazing at the horizon over the water.

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A s I w a s w r i t i n g t h i s j u s t n o w, t h e e a r t h r u m b l e d a g a i n .

Everything shook. I held my breath, got on my knees, and glaredat the trembling until it was over. I am gambling with my life. In
the rain of radiation, I am all alone.

cows in ʻem. It was like something out of Nazi Germany.” We sweat
a cold sweat over our spirits.

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There is no night without a dawn.

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We are sweating. Another man says, “A farmer threw away all of
the vegetables from his ﬁeld, and later that night, he sadly took
his life.” We sweat a cold sweat over our spirits.

“Suppose the birds are dead under all that radioactivity. Youthem in a coﬃn and let them be. The coﬃn should be madeIf so, then my clock and yours are both one minute behind. There
are lots of surgical masks people have used and thrown away inthe trash. Therefore, my clock and yours are both one minutebehind. We are behind.

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when you might lose them in an instant … If you just think about

all else. Of all the things weʼ ve seen so far, I think thatʼ s thepigeons ﬂies this way from the depths of the sky. Are these birds

that for a minute, you realize the only thing you can do is to risk

your whole being and think of something so the world does not

We sweat. Yet another man says, “Iʼ m afraid of plutonium above
worst.” We sweat a cold sweat over the soles of our feet.

rip them away.

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和合亮一@wago2828

from meaning, the world continues to support the extremes of

Yet another man says, “I went oﬀ to work today in Watari in

Supported by the spiritual power of a universe that pulls awaybirth and destruction, and thus continues to exist eﬀortlessly.

The heat of the sauna is as much as I can take. We are sweating.
Fukushima Prefecture. There were piles of rubble everywhere.

Then, there were people stuck in the middle of that, working as if
their life depended on it.”

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和合亮一@wago2828

to put all of the unidentiﬁed bodies. The neighboring high school

Fukushima to be angry, even angrier than it is already.” A cold

The high school gymnasium I loved so much has become a placebuilding, too.

“Someone in Watari was saying something.” What? “Itʼ s okay forsweat covers our foreheads. In the blazing heat of the sauna, I

think back on how this spring, my sonʼ s elementary school did
not have a graduation ceremony.

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和合亮一@wago2828

rush down the stairs in bare feet, trying to get outside. That was

the mistake of saying, “Only the gods know what is going on with

The earth rumbled again. This time, there was a lot of shaking. I

near the place with the unidentiﬁed bodies I wrote about in mylast post. But even if I rushed outside, the radiation would still beraining down.

I go too far at the speed of anger through the dark, nighttime

Angry against what? What? Blame what? What? One oﬃcial madethat nuclear reactor.” So then, blame the gods? As I let the rain fall
over my heart, I sweat a cold sweat over my spirit. I might havereached my limit.

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working, water running from the tap, neighbors talking in the

No choice but to wash our hands, washing away various stainsof the wind that follows the rain.

Heard from Tok yo, Hokkaido, and France. All talking about

I am waiting at the bus stop trying to get on a bus when a ﬂock ofclean, in silence.

infected didnʼ t increase today.” “I hope tomorrow would be the same”

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the front glass and laughs with his enlarged face. You lit tle

eyes of the woman whispers to me on a windy spring night, afterTears. Thereʼ s no end to them. The devil presses his face against“Not to forget” is a phrase for those who can forget. The ﬁre in thegreenhorn, sell your soul.

some years. That I lost my family in the Tsunami is what I am, mymemories.

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I havenʼ t been crying, not a tear.

changed.” An empty bus with no one aboard rushes by, going back to
the depot. Was that an aftershock? No. A ﬂier pasted up at the bus

stop is ripped oﬀ and tossed about by the wind. I chase after it, but it
quickly blows oﬀ into the distance. Fukushima, Fu-ku-shi-ma.

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I am waiting at the bus stop when a ﬂock of pigeons ﬂies out of the depths of the

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No one in the platform of the station.

was March, nine years ago. I feel as if the long line of empty cars has

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of the ocean. I want someone to ﬁnd it, pick it up, and let them all

Between night and day, darkness.

out. I want someone to empty it, all the little shells together. withthe salty water. The name of this salty water is “loneliness.”man who gave his life in exchange for the lives of his fellow
inhabitants.

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和合亮一@wago2828

are facing through my own experiences 11 years ago. I was

ruthlessly shooting good Ukrainian townspeople without any

Reading through Olia's notes, I try to understand the silence you

In th e world to day, th ere are young s o l dier s w h o have tothreatened by the insecurity and fear. As I read through the notes,

weapons, one after another from behind for no reason.

however, I am witnessing the visible anxiety and fear, the ﬂames,

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We leap over it,

breathe deeply in it.

Itʼ s okay.

Viruses and pollens, grief and loneliness, kindness and words,

The dream is right in front of us, shaking.

reject, pick up, ignore, and protect? I put my mask back on andSilently, with tears.

frustrated, to the sea, frustrated, to the sea, to the sea.

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Oh furious, indignant, sobbing soul! To the sea.

No one at the station. I looked at these, and I came home soaking wet. I wouldthat found a used mask thrown away. It was like a creature
My sad self.

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where?

moment like this, what can you do, when you know where theI want to take oﬀ my mask and speak up, but to whom and to

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Horizon, separate the sky from the sea! Dawn. A single sailboat.

hear the sound of a train rattling far away. The breath of theTrees sway in the wind. Flowers bloom. Looking up at the clouds, I
spring, please give us the last breath to the shadow of thetsunami!

invisible virus.

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Kicking a pebble. Suddenly, I look back. No one was there. At a

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decided not to evacuate and to stay . First of all, do not go out. If you have noBlack crosswalks,

Memories of masses of used masks in a bag thrown away. For the people to who
choice, take oﬀ all your clothes before entering your house when you returnhome. Put them in garbage bags and throw them away or burn them. Take aWhite crosswalks,

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my house. Hearing that sound, I think about something so small

take a bath. I was wearing my dirty self. I just wanted to take wash

behind those, there are many, many chairs for all those windows.

ﬁghting, praying with people all over the world. In silence, Iʼ d be
the sound itself hitting the window.

Nine years after the earthquake. No water for 10 days. I wanted toit oﬀ. I remember being encouraged by the unique advice ofA lot of windows,

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most critical situation “silence,” you keep your ears wide open, and are trying to

The lives that remains undiscovered, in the extreme cold or on“I miss silence” , you muttered, but this silence also scares you. In the midst of thisnightmare of the crushing crowd, they gave up evacuating.

remain who you are. And you are trying to hear the words from what this silence

The lives of those who defend life lives, and those who take lives.
the ocean ﬂoor. The mud and sands from the sea in a bottle on

display . . . , that were with my student's life... I felt so sad but still, I

says, risking your own life. All that we see read in your personal notes from Kharkiv,

had a tender feeling. I coundʼ t hold back my tears.

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Some other people arrived instead of those who left ‒ theEvery time I read your letter again, I think of you and all of you who are exposed todangerous areas.

who got his father shot and the people who were given death behind their backs

the horror of the bombing, to the cold muzzles of the guns, I see the eyes of the boy
without even realising it, and I am again lost for words. The 'intention to kill' that

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sad travels to the west. All of them say that we, in our basement,

this down, I wonder how you and the people there are surviving

In the midst of a vast ocean storm..., the entire sky is polluted by

the form of a giant. What it actually was was the shadow of the pylons

second, all seem so long. Iʼ m praying for your safety, praying thattragedy is taking place in your country.

huge electric lights ﬂickering towards us. I still occasionally recall that the

They spend some time with us and then leave to continue their

are in safe conditions, compared to what they have had been in in
their previous places.

One day, one hour, one minute, one second, while I am writing

Dear Olia,

I once had an intuition that the darkness of the universe was standing insince the invasion. One day, one hour, one minute and one

the threat... With your letter in hand, I felt again what a hugearound the nuclear power station in the dusk as night was falling, and thethe war-torn sky will soon open up.

power plant almost looked as an image of a huge, terrifying human.

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bombardment, Kharkiv - Day 10] Olia Fedoraova

just sit still even when there is plenty of space around, evenboy whose father was shot by Russian soldiers. That memory

sky is frightening. O world, do not lock up yourself. I pray with all[Life in the air- raid shelter under the Russian b ombs

Last night's news showed a sad video interview with a Ukrainian'There is nowhere safe under the sky” . Everything under the blue

immediately crossed my mind.

my heart for the safety of you, Olia. And we try to share your voice

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even now.

eyes as he describes his father's collapse. The whole situation you

unknowable darkness of "the intention to kill". The lives that have

I noticed these people do not lie casually on our blankets, they
though I see how tired they are. I saw a child sleeping on her

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Today is the 10th day of the full-scale war.

I donʼ t know why, maybe they still cannot believe they are safe

to as many as I can, so, keep talking to us.

It showed the images of the bullet holes left in the wall. The boy's
are in came to me again strongly as I followed Olia's words.

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Actually Iʼ ve already lost count of the days, I hardly remember
what day of the week it is.

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I wonder if they can ever take refuge from this situation.

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I saw the news footage of the people in a Ukrainian town shot from behindby Russian soldiers who came out unexpectedly, unaware of what was
happening. The footage was cut at a the moment when the trigger was
pulled. But immediately after I saw it, a cold feeling stuck on my back and it
still stays there. It still haunts me as the shadow of a small, sharp hole.

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Fortunately, yesterday and today, it was a bit quieter than usual.

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I donʼ t know if I also can.

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Everyone in the world now carries that bullet hole in the wall on
their back. I feel that the words you wrote about in your letter,"the intent to kill", are chasing me hard from behind.

wearing it. Or, could I take it oﬀ ?

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和合亮一@wago2828

unfortunately. Itʼ s about the belongs families all over the world who canʼ t

on a rainy day. I got in line with my car, The gas was almost empty. Drenched withaccept that. In Fukushima, the clouds are moving so fast from this morning. I wasrain for about an hour, Then, I noticed that there was no sign of human. Getting out

Shall we forget about the trivial things,

trying to take a pictures as usual. My hands trembled. In the meantime, thereof the car, then I found that everyone had left their cars there and no one inside. An

were lives running through, lights falling through. I bowed my head in silence.

empty scenery. I was terriﬁed, and wanted to laugh at myself for having been in line.

Nine years after the earthquake. That day. I found a long line of cars at a gas station

Sunset lies to you, Sunset makes you lie And again, the sunset ...
Shall we burn them in that bright red color?

How terrible it must be have been to be trapped for so long in the
saved lives, the lives that remain undiscovered. I pray for our

fragility and strength, and for the “thinking reed” . May the night
be a little clearer for you.

someone who said, “You canʼ t die from dirt.” I wonder if I still am

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In the spring wind, I think of the sadness. Itʼ s about the people who passed

couldnʼ t even tell if I was awake or asleep. Under such a situation,

Others went to the railway station and then came back, because

Red crosswalks,Blue crosswalks.

and invisible, and I also think about the meaning of enduring,

Olia, I also constantly suﬀered the severe body pains, headaches

only humans possess. The black hole in the back is madly baring the fangs.

clouds are going? Kicking a pebble. I realized I am a pebble, too.

shower and wash away yourself immediately. Woops, here was no water.

Since this morning, the wind has been hitting on the windows ofgrandfather, who remains unable to return to his homeland to this day.

deaths of some 58,000 unarmed Japanese soldiers after they surrendered and the life of my

A pebble, forgotten in this world. And I kick another pebble.

rain. A quiet heart.

Tomioka toward high ground. He opened his windows andlabour in the bitterly cold environment, without giving them enough food or rest... and thethe day. I am very concerned.

of war and the labour they were forced to perform in Siberia. I will never forget the harsh

if you put on your shoes to evacuate to the shelter, or the rest ofoﬀered them to everyone else.

the Great East Japan Earthquake. Everything looks similar to that

和合亮一@wago2828

I will never forget the history of the internment of disarmed Japanese soldiers as prisoners

waking up at 2 am right after the bombing, you didnʼ t remember

when to sleep and when to wake up. In your notes, you describedand drowsiness in the days around that time 11 years ago. I

motherʼ s lap, they didnʼ t dare to lie on our blankets, though we“meow” . I picked her up. Then I knew she is had been hit by the

Field of the sea, you are aﬂame! Lull of the tide, you are aﬂame!

So many bicycles lined up, left abandoned. Again, Someone may

和合亮一@wago2828

day, but this is what we have today. The little white cat cried

I think that your fatigue has overpeaked and you don't know

relatives and friends of our neighbors who escaped from more

really like to start writing something., but pollens are swimming in my eyes.

No one in the city, No one at the station. It ʻs been 9 years since

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

Cherry blossoms.

betrayal and compassion, violence and love. Which should I

No one in front of the vending machine, No one in the large-size clothing store,

with "life"?

和合亮一@wago2828

Darkness beginning, darkness ending.

和合亮一@wago2828

I just walked down the empty streets, while being hit by the cruel spring rain. No“life” , but they donʼ t seem the same. How can we compare "life"

your body and for your spirit.

和合亮一@wago2828

they couldnʼ t catch the train, and after experiencing the

Between day and night, darkness.

tears! Spread out wide, spread, oh earth! I am going, going to theCome and go, come and go, oh wind! Fall in a drizzle, fall, myLives that defended other lives. Lives that take away other lives

Olia, I hope you are safe and sound while I am writing this. And I

buses.

和合亮一@wago2828

Behind darkness, brightness. Behind brightness, darkness.

和合亮一@wago2828

a n g e r o r a f r e n z y o f p assi o n? I a m f r us t r ate d , f r us t r ate d ,station disappeared? Disappeared? Yeah, completely.

Somewhere out there in the Paciﬁc Ocean is the image of a young

Ukraine, are your ears, our ears and the ears of the whole world.

和合亮一@wago2828

All kinds of things are stuck in a plastic bottles, itʼ s at the bottom

Not me. The wind and land of Fukushima have been weeping.

close in. That what N-san thought.

The station? Yeah, the station. The station disappeared? Yeah, theMy student is still missing and lying somewhere in the sea.

unknown thing. This inner one-way correspondence with this huge creature

and awake, in the prison cell of my mind.

A cold wind.

have thrown away the memory, That he pedaled them.

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

Fear and anxiety ﬁlled the quiet air. I felt like I was facing an enourmous,

I was writing poetry , which made me realize that I was still alive

Cherry blossoms.

和合亮一@wago2828

sobbing. Another looks for its mother while another is in despair. Shadows, shadows. They gotremble. Beside me is a growing line of people.

和合亮一@wago2828

sleeping. I fell silent.

和合亮一@wago2828

know such sadness? Three pigeons. The shadow of the electrical line and the three pigeons

和合亮一@wago2828

zero. I waited for an hour in the rain, but there was no sign of human.

Desperate for gas, I got in the line of cars. The meter already pointed

Then who was that crying?

和合亮一@wago2828

pigeons tremble on the road. An afternoon of surprises.

to enter the museum...

和合亮一@wago2828

This small breath alive is trying to freeze the stars.

one on the street, No one in the family restaurant,

right in front of me, three pigeons. The shadow of the electrical line and thesaid that even if he could get to the car park, it would be diﬃcult

for a long time. He said it was because he couldn't stop crying. He

this: The radiation is falling. It's a quiet night'.

without a second thought. Both are expressed by one word

Some of my neighbors managed to leave - by cars, by trains, or byhands spreading. Things must be connected, handed down.

和合亮一@wago2828

The train station at Tomioka disappeared.

student. One of them has not been able to see the car on display

I was safe on Twitter. I suddenly started writing a poem. It started like

Many people were saved from the tsunami by the guidance of mymy ﬂat and touched the keys of my computer to let people know that

和合亮一@wago2828

Our basement is silent, so very silent.

Someone wearing a bright red hat melts into the light from aor the road itself? I rush toward the sea. Have I become a ball ofstop on the electrical line. This surprises me. On the shadow of the electrical line

through the ﬁelds of Fukushima, these shadows upon the earth. Has Fukushima really come tohouse. Spring dusk. Spring. Cherr y blossoms. A sadness, likeAnd I also think I heard a dead silence of the world, too.

What will be the ﬁrst to give out̶the gas, my life, my heart, time,

sky toward me, ﬂying from a rent in the deep clouds of meaning. Three birds

Countless shadows pass in front of the bus stop. One shadow gnashes its teeth, another is

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

shouted, get out of here, get out of here, it ʼ s a tsunami, a

和合亮一@wago2828

of radiation. On the 16th, after my family had evacuated, I remained in

It was raining on the night of 14 March. It kept raining with high levels

hope you have a peaceful shelter there, if only for a moment, forOn this earth?

alarming degree, growing angry and pitch black as it started to

N-san ﬂew to his car, jumped in and drove at top speed out of

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

realized. Is there anyone who intends to tell a lie?

threatened with the shadow of the unseen have come back again.

Masks, washing hands, staying home. After nine years, our lives

I think I heard a prime minister of a country preach in the wind.

As he looked out, the sea seemed to push up the horizon to an

The horizonʼ s so tall, itʼ s a wall, a gigantic black wall closing in.

these as important documents and pass them on to future generations...

distant bombardment.

和合亮一@wago2828“Letʼ s stop the lies and falsehoods about Corona.” I suddenly

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

tsunami. I saw the mud and sand from the seaside at the time, which came out offrom Fukushima". I almost realized that Fukushima would end.

和合亮一@wago2828

Sometimes my own blood pulsating in my head sounds like a

All day, April 1 and the day before. A call spread out on Twitter.

和合亮一@wago2828“Once in a century”

meaning?

I e-mail a friend. “The sound of the word ʻFukushimaʼ has completely

corridor or in the garden̶for the sounds of explosions,

In Tokyo, Food is on the shelves, somehow. In Hokkaido, The number of the“By now, this is a war .” The U.S.: “The infection is spreading rapidly.” Thewords from the future, ﬂying this way out of the deep clouds of

和合亮一@wago2828

I mishear everyday sounds̶the sound of an air-conditioner

warplanes appoaching.

bubbles. Shadows, let all washed away, let all disappear, out ofthat said this.

和合亮一@wago2828

The police car of my student which I was able to face, had only the lower half ofwere jammed with evacuees and their cars. Announcements were

the smoke, the sounds of the explosions.

sea.

completely of lead.” It was the man whose sweat looks like jewels

和合亮一@wago2828

Is there someone who is important to you? There are situations

A phone call. An earthquake. March 11. 2:46 p.m. N-san was in

The day after the 12th of March, Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant

actually helped me to keep going. I remember those days when I was locked up in athis spring breeze.

should smash your soul. Your soul should be smashed by you.

saw a bunch of innocent cows lined up in trucks on their way tothe slaughterhouse. There were lots of trucks driving along with

When we donʼ t hear the explosions for long, we immediately

COVID-19. This invisible earth.

something. I have to get on the train just a little bit earlier thaninto your ﬁst, slam your ﬁst into your ﬁst. Slam your ﬁst into your ﬁst. You

和合亮一@wago2828

inside whenever we look directly at things head on.

of a motherʼ s lullaby.

you got it? If youʼ re frustrated, thatʼ s what youʼ ve gotta do, slam your ﬁstthem in a box one by one, I felt miserable. For myself, for the

We are sweating. One man says, “Yesterday in the town of Iitate, I

the body of the police car when it on display. They said that they wanted to keep

和合亮一@wago2828

has adhered to my clothes, if even by a small amount.

和合亮一@wago2828

kitchen, for the world.

the body remaining. Once again, I learnt how enormous the power of themade on TV and radio, "Please stay calm, everyone evacuating

station where there is nobody, the wind comes through following

been still there, or somewhere else. I am silent. I bow in silence.

Iʼ ll tell you what to do if youʼ re frustrated and upset. Slam your ﬁst into your

和合亮一@wago2828

Unit 3 exploded. The situation became most urgent. The roads

和合亮一@wago2828

Under the sunshine, with the mask on, staring at the train at theﬁelds of Fukushima. For the ﬁrst time, I discover the real meaning

my house. That will decrease their exposure to the radioactivity whichmeaning we would ﬁnd but, rather, something close to the

The kitchen. I cleaned up the broken, sccattered plates. As I put

I go too far at the speed of anger through the dark, nighttime

Getting out of the car, then I found a line of cars with none inside. It

和合亮一@wago2828

darkness of non-meaning̶that temporar y stillness lodged

和合亮一@wago2828

Because I believe that someday in the future, my family will return to

和合亮一@wago2828

found. It was kept and displayed in the town's musium as one of the archives.

snatched away by the black waves. The police car he was in at the time was latermental shelter, writing poems that I didn't know if anyone would ever read.

other day. A friend in a city said as he hung up the phone, “The number of the

I suddenly realize. As he we look at each other, it is as brutally hot

continued to evauate the people near the seaside, and eventually, he wassilence between the aftershocks.

we were threatened by more earthquakes, more explosions... in theunknowable face-like thing and its murmurings. I struggled to speak back to thisthe bubbles, toward the absolute silence, with our hands kept

和合亮一@wago2828

trust the silence anymore” , Olia writes. I remember 11 years ago, when

When he was informed of the tsunami, he called out for evacuation and he

和合亮一@wago2828

infected has calmed down, Because everyone trying not to go out. In France:

everything, the threat of this moment that is the present. As I

I am a teacher. One of my ex-students was a young police oﬃcer around the area.

to fear anything terrible you would come across. But here, we donʼ t

start asking ourselves if it is good or not.

和合亮一@wago2828

A black wave, swallowing ever y thing, completely covering“I miss the silence - the real silence of calmness, where you do not have

和合亮一@wago2828

But here, we donʼ t trust the silence anymore.

of a cat?

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

and bacterias, letting these things disappear together into these

和合亮一@wago2828

over.'

Itʼ s not pollens. The shadow of “invisible things,” or the shadow

和合亮一@wago2828

planning to come to school here in Fukushima̶at both private and public schools

is poisoned'. I mut tered your phrase to myself, and then I,

tense air at that time in Fukushima came back to me.

anything terrible you would come across.

和合亮一@wago2828

Something hitting on the windows, hitting on the windows.

ﬁelds of Fukushima. For the ﬁrst time, I discover the real soprano

And my bath is still broken from the one of the aftershocks thespirits.

If we are to search for meaning in all of this, it is probably notof a wild horseʼ s whinny.

The uninhabited town beyond the barricades was simply quiet.

2022 when I read Olia's notes, written in Kharkiv, Ukraine while

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

I believe our greatest wish for happiness is just to be able to live

The back teeth creak. Itʼ s spring. The bad bite. My proﬁle sinks.

University have been dropping out one after another. There were lots of students

Still another man says, “ The students who were planning to star t at Fukushima

day before yesterday. First, the light in the bathtub went out. The

world of hurt.”

I go too far at the speed of anger through the dark, nighttime

Eleven years ago, just before noon on 12 March, Fukushima Nuclear

和合亮一@wago2828

The real silence of calmness where you do not have to fearover our memories.

和合亮一@wago2828

A quite long quake, shaking side to side. Shall I bet? Will you win

The sky is looking at me looking at the sky.

sudden.

和合亮一@wago2828

It has been two weeks since Iʼ ve put my arms through my shirtsleeves. I

unexpectedly, added a phrase like this. 'Even the silence is left

me, and when I looked up, the season changed to spring, too

Replacing what? Replacing something. We sweat a cold sweat

and my hands. A day in which I am divided into fragments.

or will I? “This time Iʼ m about done, but next time, youʼ re in for a

The day before yesterday, the corpses of a thousand people wereAnother man says, “In the mornings, I see huge numbers of cars

you someone who is no longer with us? Tears.

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

We allow the drops to fall onto our souls. A cold sweat. And still,

The houses standing abandoned in the silence. 'Even the silenceheavily bombed by Russia. My heart was shaken. The extremely

Minamisōma. How are you holding up? I, for one, am not doing very well.

bag. I put my hat in the third bag. My underwear and socks go into the washer. I

Perhaps one could even say that the two are even opposed to one
another.

into rubble. I think of you, who have been looking for your mother all this time inthe same presence as a human being. It breathes, like a piece of clothing

和合亮一@wago2828

Maybe so. There is a clear border between things and meaning.

On a certain day in a certain month, all the books in the library are scattered, all the

和合亮一@wago2828

Power Plant Unit 1 exploded. It was just a little after that date in

I miss the silence.

Each of us is the Earth itself.

have pressed on me. Houses completely leaning over, with dirty glass

Shelter, which is the pebbles of poetry is now to begin with Wago's reply to Oliaʼ s

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

the uninhabited town, I had the feeling of something that these 11 years

和合亮一@wago2828

oﬀ, I heard the creaking of a windmill. A tulip ﬁeld walked toward

nature repeating over and over in my head.

和合亮一@wago2828

around, does it become “eventually” ? I am worried about mythey just remain silent. “It wouldnʼ be possible.” When I laughed it

Will our hearts be all right? The heat takes me to the very limit of endurance.

of the stairs, and as I reeled, I hesitated, worried about whether or

The gasoline is already gone. Will our water be gone? Will theWinds that forgot to blow blew into my room again tonight, andstop a day that will never return? That is why the clock is behind.

here̶but they and their parents keep asking, ʻIs everything okay with the radiation?ʼ”not I should open the door. Outside, radioactivity rains down.

They say the radioactivity isnʼ t enough to immediately cause

和合亮一@wago2828

I go at the speed of anger through the dark, nighttime ﬁelds ofthe lure into the pond. It doesnʼ t matter how long we spend there; we still donʼ t

We sweat a cold sweat over the backs of our eyes.

hometown wears a twisted face, covered in tears.

和合亮一@wago2828

As we shake, I think back nostalgically. This time last year. How my son and I tried

the explosions of the nuclear power plant. Looking at the landscape ofbut at 2 am we woke at the sound of explosions. I donʼ t even remember

no dreams these days, neither good dreams, nor nightmares.

Electric wires go on as far as the eye can see.

和合亮一@wago2828

I went out the other day near the area that remained a no-go zone after

during this war in Ukraine, I came to know that her boyfriend was preparing to go towindows, with grass growing wild. Such houses, houses and houses.

remember that I immediately fell asleep again there in the shelter. I have

Cruel spring rain and winds never stop. I want to let this violent

和合亮一@wago2828

If so, then my clock and your clock are both one minute behind.

Minamisōma.” What expression does your hometown wear? Our

I think I h eard t u r tl e d ove s co o. T h e ch e r r y b l oss o ms arein a big building. While I was waiting for him, I caught a glimpse

rep eate d over an d over o n th e s cre en. My f r ien d t aps my

和合亮一@wago2828

oneʼ is ﬁshing. The pattern of waves.

Shut the hell up, Iʼ m gonna smash the radiation.

和合亮一@wago2828

Hundreds, no, thousands of times. The clips repeated over andme she was dizzy as a result of diabetes. I got some nori rolls,

Putting my mask back on and hanging my head.

Iʼ m gonna smash the goddamn earthquake.

I want to get back that one minute, one hour, one day, one

One by one, silence.

Maybe I want to forget words.

和合亮一@wago2828

A black wave, swallowing ever y thing, completely coveringin, we were all struggling with each other to get things. An old

can be taken away ʻfor no reason'... I feel an inexpressible despair.

notes from the actual shelter in Kharkiv, Ukraine.

if I put on my shoes, took my stuﬀ, and ran oﬀ to the shelter, but I do

和合亮一@wago2828

smash the waves, get some payback, move, move, move, move,

missiles when it they hits your house.

war as a soldier. They are planning to hold a wedding ceremony after his safe return.

One muttering, in the soil,

What do you want to do? Where do you want to go?

Empty stations, empty towns, empty intersections. Oh, empty.

lifetime. From the bus window, I see a pond with no one. That ʻnoof the TV in the security guardʼ s room. That was the moment̶

Homes, families and livelihoods are being taken away for no

和合亮一@wago2828

While talking directly with Olia about her personal notes depicting the shelter life

In the night of the Day 9 we decided to stay home and sleep in our beds,

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

The evening of the earthquake I set out to meet an acquaintanceyet become a missing person not really missing?

I desire silence from the bottom of my heart now - but if it lasts

These days, we always remember “the rule of two walls” . It

One seed. One bulb. One reﬂecting the sk y. One thinking ofSilence.

smooth out the wrinkles one by one. I think back. The wrinkled
waves, that black wave.

reason. We are living in this world on the premise that our lives

means you need to have at least two walls between you and theSpinner.

look for new tears, just listen. Winds are blowing every day. So,

Wipe away your tears silently. When your cheeks are dry, donʼ t

和合亮一@wago2828

II iron my shirt with hands that are unaccustomed to the work. I

和合亮一@wago2828

too long, it scares me even more.

和合亮一@wago2828

insistently. Drum type.

和合亮一@wago2828

Can a spring wind blow into the empty shelves for the masks ?

smash the sea, gonna get some payback for all this, gonna smash

move, move. Goddamn devil. Iʼ m gonna strike my ﬁst into my ﬁst.

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

protected.

The walls of this building are quite thick, and we feel kind of

Spring. Doing the laundry, I feel my heart, left behind, forgotten,

和合亮一@wago2828

breath, the breath to put an end.

和合亮一@wago2828

和合亮一@wago2828

the image of the bullet holes in the back opening wider.

和合亮一@wago2828

parents.

grandfather's death, which I have been facing for a long time.

When I mutter your words 'even the silence is poisoned', I can see

this with all the ferocity of an Asura.

I asked my parents to evacuate, but they said they didnʼ t want totragedy that is happening in Ukraine, the bombings, killings,

warplanes or the sounds of the explosions that come too close.

2:46, my poetic friends, I beg you through tears) pass by the bus station.

和合亮一@wago2828

Everywhere I go, there is nothing but tears. I want to write about

Why did my grandfather have to die in Siberia? This has somehow

movie, to go to the shower or even to wash my face and brush

The darkness of the universe.

和合亮一@wago2828

To be alone. And, not to be lonely. Not to be lonely, but try to be

I do not undress, even when I go to sleep, I only take my shoes oﬀ.

And when we hear an explosions nearby, we decided not to go

和合亮一@wago2828

We even spent most of our time in our ﬂat, not in the shelter.

和合亮一@wago2828

I feel so unprotected, so naked in my own home.

和合亮一@wago2828

My grandfather was interned in Siberia in the Second World War
and died during his internment. His remains have not beenreturned from the extreme cold land. Somewhere in my heart, I
am strongly trying to overlap my feelings about the recent
invasion of Ukraine with my feelings for my grandfather.