Hisashiku mo narinikeru kana suminoe no matsu wa kurushiki mono ni zo arikeru - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

久しくもなりにけるかな住の江の
まつは苦しきものにぞありける

Roma-ji: Hisashiku mo narinikeru kana suminoe no matsu wa kurushiki mono ni zo arikeru
English Translation: How very long now
has the time become for me;
like the pines of Suminoe,
waiting, I have come to know,
is a thing of bitter pain
Meaning: How long it has been! Waiting, like the pines of Suminoe whose name it shares, has turned out to be a painful thing.
Commentary: Book Fifteen Love Poems V 778

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
After waiting a long time, the speaker has learned how painful waiting is. The pine of Suminoe, a symbol of longevity, is punned with matsu, "to wait," and the pine's great age is layered with the long wait. The next poem also speaks of the pine of Suminoe and of long time, and the two stand together on the same material.

The first line speaks of long time, with mo adding feeling. It corresponds to hisa ni in the second line of the next poem.
In the second line ni keru kana expresses completion and exclamation: how long it has become. The poem breaks here.
The third line names Suminoe in Settsu, a place famous for its pines.
In the fourth line matsu is a pivot word, meaning both the pine of Suminoe and waiting for a lover.
The last line resolves zo with keru, the attributive of keri, expressing the realization that waiting was painful.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Kokin Wakashu
Prev Poem: Konu hito o matsu yūgure no akikaze wa ika ni fukeba ka wabishikaruramu
Next Poem: Suminoe no matsu hodo hisa ni narinureba ashitazu no ne ni nakanu hi wa nashi