The front of the cherry blossoms has moved northward, and there are places where the cherry blossoms are beginning to fall.  The flower raft that dyes the surface of the river in cherry blossoms colors and flows down slowly has a taste and is the most lonely sight too.  Until it begins to bloom, one is longing for the blooming, and when it blooms, one gets drunk like crazy, and the appearance of admiring the cleanliness of the dispersal correctly shows the characteristics of the Japanese people.  The transition of the four seasons stands out more than any other country in the world, and the colorful and varied nature has nurtured such Japanese qualities.  The temperament of being harmonious, respectful, unwilling to fight, and caring for others is what is most sought after in the world today.  I thought about the far sea where the flower rafts flow and the countries beyond that, so that the world would become peaceful as soon as possible and the peaceful days would return.

桜最前線はかなり北上し、早いところでは桜が散り始めています。川面を桜色に染めて緩やかに流れ下る花筏は風情もあり、いちめん寂しくもある光景です。咲き始めるまでは、まだかまだかと待ち侘び、咲いたら狂ったように酔い痴れ、散り際の潔さにまた感嘆する姿は、正しく日本人の特質を表しています。四季折々の移り変わりは世界のどの国よりも際立ち、色鮮やかで変化に富む自然がそうした日本人の特質を育んできました。和を持って尊しとし、争いを好まず、他人を労わる気質こそ、今の世界に最も求められるものです。どうか一日も早く世界が平和になり、平穏な日々が戻ってくる様に、花筏が流れ行き着く咲きの海、その先の国々に思いを馳せました。