“Dear Future Me” is a series in which Shohei Koyama—poet and owner of JIYUCHO — delivers poetic words in Japanese and English, like letters to his future self that trace the subtleties of everyday life. I hope this becomes a place like your mailbox where postcard poems arrive.

Summer Skin

Blue, isn't it,

you said.

Sweat ran down my skin.


Hot, isn't it,

you said.

I felt the same.


Season,

don't go.


An empty glass.

The sweat begins to dry.


It was morning.

Now it's night.


Before I knew it,

I was walking home alone.


Sour and pale.

Hot and precious.

The blazing sun

still holds your light,

still lets you shine.


I chase your back.

From night into morning,

I'll change the story.

Laughing and leaping,

little by little.

Talking,

drawing closer,

little by little.


Season,

I've been waiting.


A fresh white canvas of clouds.

Rain and sweat

let the colors bleed.

The fierce sunlight

burns the edges just a little.


Our summer.


Guided by your fresh voice,

I follow the trail of sweat.

The wind runs across our skin.

A finger traces the coastline.

Summer's warmth

passes from skin to skin.


A new summer.


JIYUCHO Readings