_{("Cat with Bell" by Shotei Takahashi)}

If you've been keeping up with my haiku posts, it may come as no surprised that Issa was a cat lover. He loved all creatures, of course, but like most of us he had a special love for cats; among all his haiku, he wrote over a hundred haiku on cats, many of them on cat courting habits, such as the one above.

Now, in fairness, neko no koi, cat love, is a spring kigo, so this is a common haiku theme that many haiku poets make use of; still, it's one that Issa returned to time and again. I'd say that equals cat lover.

	David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku.

1. That is, me! If you like this translation, feel free to use it. Just credit me. Also link to this post or to my Peak profile page. ↩