Jizo Keeps an Eye out
a Japanese journey, by Robin Laurie
Robin Laurie captures moments from our eight day haiku walking journey from Ena to Karuizawa, along mountain paths through villages and towns, catching an occasional local train or bus and staying in traditional ryokans.
so handsome, those young railway men
in their pristine black uniform and hat
bowing as they leave one carriage
bowing as they enter the next
Japanese garden: water, rocks, clipped trees, lines of light and shade
cool piano jazz in the dining room
worlds meet
post office kindness
a neat white box filled
a weight removed
a raven, a sparrow and an insect fly past
we wait for the train
young men patrol their shops
buses discharge Japanese tourists in face masks and small hats
a hawk circles overhead
it’s a constant effort
maintaining the path up the mountain
to the castle ruins
a tiny silver plane floats past the tip of the mountain
a butterfly lands at my feet
amongst the trees
an invisible bird and I have a whistled conversation
I grin like a madwoman
one shabu shabu after another
it’s all starting to blur blur
feet swish, stomp, squelch and slide
walking poles leave a line of holes
marking our passing
Mt Ontake watches us then hides
appears again
at dusk we return its gaze through the ryokan window
the air carries the touch of snow
I feel it on my skin
tiny perfect pine cones
so beautiful
you’d need a lot to make a warming fire
Mt Ontake circles us
Jizo keeps an eye out under his red beret
travellers walking through history
everything changes
water rushes, mountains slide
flowers burst, children die
a schoolgirl skips stones on the river
we smile and wave goodbye
cobblestones echo
the slap of a million footfalls
porters sweat, samurai grunt
a metal water bottle tings against a purple back pack
thank the gods, it’s spring
a small glade filled with flattened grass
a boisterous bear’s playpen
or aftermath of the weight of winter snow?
as we walk
sometimes I am first, sometimes last
that’s just how it is
acorns on the path
scratch marks in the ground
a bear’s dining room
I quicken my pace
I think I could walk forever
turn and do it all again
twin addictions: walking and good writing company
I love train stations
more personal than airports
and less bling
Tokyo bullet train
Each in our separate seats
Re-entry begins
©Robin Laurie Japan 2018
Robin Laurie works in the performing arts industry as a director and facilitator and likes to dabble in the haiku form. Robin was a participant in Haiku Walking — The Nakasendo Way in 2018.
Photos by Jan Cornall, taken along the Nakasendo Way in 2018.
Our next haiku adventure will be Haiku Snow Walk in Japan’s snow country in Jan/Feb 2019. More details here.
The next Moroccan Caravan is currently in planning and will take place in March 1–15, 2019. Beginning in Tangier it will travel via Chefchaouen (the blue city) and Fes arriving in Tissardmine for our desert sojourn and camel trek.
