Cypress

never
never before have I
heard it

the ring
the gold coin's
round ring

I heard it in
the water
the cold wavering water

as I
slept
slept

joy may be the answer

shake, shake
the sugar from the
stalk

let's go back
to the fountain

"birds fly up
where my foot
was going" *

I found
chamomile flowers
roots

like loves

papers fallen from a
certain hand

falling, fallen into the
water

* from W.S. Merwin's East Window, "Japanese Figures II"