where I wash the rice mizosoba has bloomed unnoticed
kome togu tokoro mizosoba no itsu to naku saite
1937–1938 · Late years at Gochū-an
Sōmokutō · Persimmon Leaves (Kaki no ha)
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By the water where he washes his rice, the small flowers of mizosoba (persicaria) have opened without his noticing. No one planted them. He realizes with a start that autumn has quietly arrived at the very spot where he does his cooking each morning — the still discovery of a man for whom daily life and the seasons are one continuous ground.