雛の顔我是非なくも老にけり
hina no kao ware zehi naku mo oi ni keri
the faces of the dolls...
i couldn't avoid
growing old
—Seifu
(trans. David LaSpina[1])
("Enjoying the Doll Festival" by Mizuno Toshikata)
I talked about this a little yesterday, but in brief: March 3rd is doll festival in Japan, also called Girl's Day. The main feature of this event is dolls of the emperor and empress and all the court set up and displayed on a nice stand. The dolls are quite nice—and usually very expensive. Which wouldn't be a problem normally, except for the fact that every family with a girl pretty much has to buy a set due to social pressure. Thankfully there is often a set somewhere in the family that has been handed down for years, but if not then grandparents often foot the bill for new dolls.
Here Seifu is at the market and looking at the Girl's Day dolls. She is struck by how young and timeless the dolls' faces look, and in turn reminded of how she has grown old. We all secretly hope we will be exceptions to the universal rule of growing old; when it inevitably comes we are somewhat shocked and a little sad. Ah... I couldn't avoid it after all!
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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. |
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