Shuntaro Tanikawa Poems

Mother,
Why is the river laughing?
Why, because the sun is tickling the river
...

One day somewhere
someone played the piano.
...

Human beings on this small orb
sleep, waken and work, and sometimes
wish for friends on Mars.
...

Having parted with the evening glow
I meet with night.
But the angrier red clouds go nowhere
...

When I am sad I can't write a sad poem.
All I can do is endure my tears.
When I'm happy I don't write a happy poem.
...

It's no use
floundering in the heart's shallows.
...

Yes, this is the guy I call "watashi"—
Two tiny eyes and two common ears,
one nose, one mouth.
...

age three
there was no past for me
...

So, coming one day
from somewhere,
suddenly I was standing on the grass;
...

Nero
another summer is coming soon
your tongue
...