Issa: Winter seclusion

I enjoy this poem for the lesson it teaches about patience. It is often in these moments, listening "to the rain in the mountain," we learn a great deal about ourself.

Issa: Winter seclusion

Winter seclusion –
Listening, that evening,
To the rain in the mountain.

— Kobayashi Issa

I enjoy this poem for the lesson it teaches about patience. Japanese winters can be long, and in rural areas there was little to do but wait for the Spring. It is often in these moments we learn a great deal about ourself.