Tonight, walking around the block through the thick humid air with my son held to my chest, I caught my first whiff of jasmine while turning a corner. That, to me, signals the beginning of summer. I love season defining moments like this, annual firsts that mark a distinguishable turning point in the year.
Before coming to Japan, I don’t know what would have marked the end of spring and the beginning of summer for me. No particular scents or sights come to mind. Maybe that’s because a lot of time has past since I last spent a full year in the U.S. Or maybe it’s because these are things that I never noticed before.
I remember hearing my ex-girlfriend’s mother once say as we sat on her porch drinking wine that she loved the moment she first heard the sound of the wind in the leaves every spring. At the time, it was something I had never noticed. But every year after that, I’ve paid attention to the appearance of leaves on trees and have tried hard to notice that moment when they are big enough and full of enough to give a new voice to the wind.
How about all of you? What marks the transition from spring to summer for you?
in the courtyard
a weeping cherry tree
they hold each other
two puzzle pieces
wandering the night
play with a monk
sweeping the temple steps
a chorus silenced
with one step
in front of the shrine
wind chimes
between dandelions
a blue butterfly
