The Clear Lake

In the cafeteria of the Sanatorium,
As everyone paints their coloring books,
An aged man has come in.
Sitting in front of the TV,
He's always drinking a can of ginger ale,
That he bought it from the vending machine at the reception.
But one day, suddenly,
He has started to draw,
A picture of a mountain and a lake.
It looked like something a primary schoolboy would draw,
But the colors were so, so clear.
In pure water,
There reflected the mountain,
And there was something important, so important.
And there were full of elements that fascinated people.
While everyone was admiring,
A caseworker made a frame of the picture,
Out of a piece of black cardboard.
The masterpiece was decided to be hung,
In the corner of the dining room.
Sometimes, someone stares at the picture,
There is a red-flag yacht and a yellow-flag one sailing on the lake,
No one flatters the man too much.
He is still in good humor,
Sitting in front of the TV,
Drinking a ginger ale from a golden can.
The picture is so fantastic,
But when he comes home,
He remains a little bent over,
Maybe he's still drunk,
But the caseworker mumbled a few words,
"Mr. K's heart is as clear as this lake, isn't it?"
I have completely agreed.
I thought that was more than enough.
I am convinced that human dignity is,
To be recognized for the people as they are,
Not to be manipulated into doing what people want without their consent.
(Translated by Akira OKAWADA)

○Miku HAYAMA
Poet, A member of Japan Poet’s Association, and The Japan Writer’s Association.
She was raised by intellectual class parents, nevertheless, she has suffered from
nonconformity to Japanese society since childhood.
At 30 years old, she started writing poetry and expressing her own mental disorder.
She published four poetry books, and recently, she also writes some novels.
She admires writers such as J.D. Salinger, Philip Roth, and E.L. Konigsburg.