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POEM
Live, for The Future
A lesson learned from cherry blossoms
Cherry blossoms
Every year, all across Japan
they burst into bloom at the beginning of spring
In parks and schoolyards, alongside roads and rivers
These blossoms are loved as much for their brevity as for their beauty
They remind us, I am told, of how fleeting and fragile life is
But is it?
One year in early spring,
I saw a cracked branch dangling down to the ground
Better to break it off, I thought
But then spring came
That bent, broken, blooming branch taught me something
Live, it said
Your moment of glory will come and go
But Life will continue
So live, for the future
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I originally wrote this as the opening for Vol. 4 of , a self-published magazine written as a guide to the rustic charms of Sekikawa village.
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