あまり自覚もなしに、10代の半ばすぎから、何となく書くようになりました。

I was writing poetry in my late teens before I even realized it.

代用教員になるための練成所で、宮沢賢治の『雨ニモマケズ』を知り、心に刻まれましたし、その後、谷川雁さんからも刺激されましたが、最も本質的には近松門左衛門の『曽根崎心中』にある「道行」が心奥にとどきました。

At a training camp for substitute teachers, I came upon Kenji Miyazawa’s Ame ni mo Makezu (Be not Defeated by the Rain), which left an impression on me. Later, I was stimulated by the poetry of Mr. Gan Tanigawa, but the work that has remained etched in my mind is Monzaemon Chikamatsu’s “Michiyuki” (Lovers’ Journey) from his work Sonezaki Shinju (The Love Suicides at Sonezaki).

ただ、夢の中で遊んでおります。

I just have fun with the dreams in my head.

資生堂といえば、亡き伯母がクリームを愛用していたことを思い出します。昭和初期の田舎のことですが、何かのご縁でございましょう。詩壇のことはあまり存じませんが、伊藤比呂美さんが「いい賞ですよ」とよろこんでくださり、恐縮にもかたじけなく存じております。

When I think of Shiseido, I’m reminded of my late aunt’s favorite cream that she used to use. Living in a rural area during the Showa period, my encounter with Shiseido must have just been fate. I’m not very familiar with the poetical world, but Hiromi Ito (the poet) was very happy for me and called it a “nice award.” I’m deeply humbled and grateful to receive this honor.

あの世まで
持っていくものでございます。

It’s something I’ll be taking with me when I go to paradise.

いのちあるものが海と陸地を行き来する。文明と非文明、生と死までも行き来する。人間が最初に境界というものを意識した、その原点が渚というのです。
無意識でやってきたことの意味がやっと分ってきた。どこにいても、私は渚に立っていたのです。

と母は言いました。母、石牟礼道子は水俣という目の前の非常に重い現実と向かい合い詩や小説を書いて参りました。
母がその渚に立つ間、父も私も捨て置かれました。その母が今年の秋に現代詩花椿賞を下さると連絡して参りました。母の自らに対する美的感性には、ただならぬこだわりがあります。今も渚に立つ母ですが、捨て置かれた父も私も、この受賞を光栄に思っております。

My Mother, Michiko Ishimure: On receiving the Hanatsubaki Award for Contemporary Poetry
“It is the path for all life to traverse between land and sea. The civilized and uncivilized, from life to death, traverse between both worlds. The presence of seashores marks the beginning of the human awareness of boundaries. I finally understand why I arrived here unconsciously. Wherever I am, I am always standing at the seashore.” These words were spoken by my mother, Michiko Ishimure, who saw firsthand the profoundly distressing realities of the Minamata disease while she was writing her poems and novels. While she stood at the seashore, my father and I were left behind. My mother contacted us this fall to say that she received the Hanatsubaki Award for Contemporary Poetry. My mother’s strong sense of personal commitment to aesthetics is astounding. Though she still stands at the seashore, my father and I, whom she left behind, feel honored that she was conferred this award.
Michio Ishimure (son of Ms. Michiko Ishimure)

1927年熊本県生まれ。代用教員、主婦を経て詩歌を中心に文学活動を開始。
69年、水俣病の現実を描いた『苦海浄土―わが水俣病』で注目を浴び、第一回大宅壮一ノンフィクション賞に選ばれるも受賞辞退。93年『十六夜橋』で紫式部文学賞、2001年度朝日賞、『はにかみの国――石牟礼道子全詩集』で02年度芸術選奨文部科学大臣賞など受賞多数。

Born in Kumamoto Prefecture in 1927. After working as a substitute teacher and housewife, she began her literary career with focus on Japanese poetry. Gained attention in 1969 for her work depicting the realities of the Minamata Disease, titled Kugai jodo – Waga Minamatabyo (Paradise in the Sea of Sorrow: Our Minamata Disease), which was selected for the 1st Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award, but was refused by Ishimure. Recipient of several awards, including the Murasaki Shikibu Literary Award for Izayoibashi in 1993, the Asahi Prize in 2001, and the Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts for Hanikami no Kuni: Ishimure Michiko Zen Shishu (Hanakami no kuni: Complete Collection of Michiko Ishimure’s Poetry) in 2002.