Ayukawa Nobuo / 鮎川信夫 – Ⅱ

A Father’s Death  

 

 

 

One mere death involves many times, many places

and many more things.

Many of those things should be burnt

immediately in an incinerator.

How could people die without pain in those flames?

 On that night…

 I ran out to the dark alley to call my sister.

All the houses fell into sleep.

The orange light at the corner illuminated the darkness around it.

If your father dies like this,

you would run in the lonely night alley like I did.

I caught my breath on the street beneath the cliff.

The bright empty trains rumbled on overhead.

 Dear Father, who lived with many pains…

 Death had gentle compassion.

Over time, I will forget

his smooth, smooth

face of death.

 

 

(1957)