Haiku by Mariya Gusev (USA)
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gathering seashells
the sea swallows our footprints
collecting them all
(The Mainichi, May 11 2023)
潮干狩その足跡を海集む
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HAIKU to Akita’s “Haiku Beyond Earth”
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on an evening walk
a light tap on the shoulder
February rain
如月の雨軽やかに肩たたく夕べの散歩楽しからずや
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butterfly season
watching the day slip away
high into the trees
(Seeds from A Birch Tree by Clark Strand, 25th Anniversary Edition, Monkfish Publishing 2023)
蝶の舞ふ季節を迎へ眺むるは木の上高く日の暮れ行くを
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gathering seashells
the sea swallows our footprints
collecting them all
(The Mainichi, May 11 2023)
潮干狩その足跡を海集む
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Chesapeake beachfront
children building sand castles
under crumbling cliffs
(Trash Panda Haiku, Issue 5, Summer 2023)
チェサピーク海岸沿いの崖の下砂上の城を子供ら作る
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their faces unchanged
the bluebells in Central Park
a decade later
(The Mainichi, June 21, 2023)
ブルーベル顔変わらずや十年後
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pandemic summer
in my parents’ apartment —
last year’s calendars
(Failed Haiku, Issue 86, 2023)
カレンダー昨年のまま両親のアパートの夏パンデミックに
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stroking the child’s back
my hand appears in his dream
autumn equinox
(Seeds from A Birch Tree by Clark Strand, 25th Anniversary Edition, Monkfish Publishing 2023)
私の手子供の背中撫でている秋分の日の子供の夢に
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they know it’s over
birds singing in pre-dawn
mark the edge of night
(The Asahi Shimbun, June 2023)
夜明け前鳴く鳥告げる夜の終り
alone on an eave
an icicle leans southward
to escape the wind
(February 2021 Winner, monthly haiku challenge at Tricycle magazine)
軒先に氷柱がひとり傾けり風避けるため南の方に
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in Algeria
the snow on a camel’s back
hugs the north face
(The Mainichi, March 1, 2023)
アルジェリア駱駝の背に雪積る雪の北壁抱くが如し
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Note: Short Japanese Poetry of 17 phonetic Units of 5, 7, 5 Pattern
Inspired by ten English haiku by Mariya Gusev, Hidenori Hiruta translated them literally into ten Japanese short poems first of all.
As a result, three interpretative Japanese poems of 5, 7, 5 pattern are added to the English haiku as above.
They might be be haiku（俳句）or senryū（川柳).
Surprisingly, seven of the English haiku are interpreted into Japanese tanka （短歌）poetry of 5,7,5,7,7 pattern.
This is because English is different from Japanese.
Bio:
Mariya Gusev is an editor, translator, educator, and writer, based in the DC area.
She co-directs the International Literary Seminars, is one of the founding editors of the St. Petersburg Review, and is a board member at Springhouse Journal.
Her translations have recently appeared in PEN International, on Literalab, and in ROAR Review.
Her poetry has appeared in The Mainichi, Wales Haiku Journal, Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, Failed Haiku, Trash Panda, The Asahi Shimbun, the Kyoto Haiku Project, the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Haiku invitational, on the California Urban Forests site, and others.
She enjoys writing haiku commentaries as guest editor for Clark Strand’s Weekly Haiku Challenges online, and is at work on a poetry collection.
Mariya Gusev, Arlington VA USA
Akita International Haiku Network 