Akiguchi (Early Autumn) is quiet.  The hustle and bustle of the summer has passed, and we are in the midst of a moment of rest, exhausted from the exhaustion of play and the intense heat.  It is also a characteristic of this season that there are many flowers that bloom quietly in the fields and mountains, and there are no flowers that bloom gorgeously.  Looking up at the blue sky with brush clouds, I feel a strange mix of lethargy and melancholy.  It’s a strange feeling that the memories of the past year are mixed with the memories of the old past.  “Seeing the moon, somehow I become extremely melancholic, and I even feel as if the autumn has come only for me, though I know it’s not so”. This is a poem by Chisato Oe that was included in the Hyakunin Isshu from Kokin Wakashu.  It’s perfect for my current mood.

秋口は静かです。夏の喧騒は去り、遊び疲れと猛暑を凌いだ疲労感でひと時の休息の最中です。野山の草花も豪華絢爛に咲き競う花はなく、静かに咲く花が多いのもこの時期の特徴です。刷毛雲が漂う青空を見上げていると、気だるさとメランコリックな気分が混ざりあった不思議な気分になります。この一年の思い出と同時に古い過去の思い出が混ざり合う不思議な気分です。『月みれば　ちぢにものこそ　悲しけれ　わが身一つの　秋にはあらねど』。古今和歌集から百人一首に入集された大江千里の歌です。今の気分にピッタリです。