Watarimori fune haya watase hitotose ni futatabi kayou kimi ni aranaku ni

渡り守舟早渡せ一年に
ふたたび通ふ君にあらなくに

Roma-ji: Watarimori fune haya watase hitotose ni futatabi kayou kimi ni aranaku ni
English Translation: O ferryman, come,
row the boat across with speed!
Not twice in a year
does my dearest come this way—
he is not one who comes twice!
Meaning: Ferryman, bring the boat across quickly! He is not one who can come twice in a single year.
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2077

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Tanabata"
This poem urges the ferryman to bring the boat across quickly, since the beloved cannot come twice in a year. The preciousness of a once-a-year meeting becomes an urgent call to the ferryman. Whereas in 2072 the Herdsman's call to the ferryman did not reach him, this poem too asks the ferryman to cross quickly, so poems about the ferryman continue.

The first line, "watarimori," is the same opening as 2072.
The second line, "bring the boat across quickly," breaks the poem after the second line.
The third line, "in one year," sets the span.
The fourth line, "coming twice," names what is impossible.
In the last line, "kimi ni aranaku ni," "naku ni" is a nominalized negative with "ni": since he is not one who does. By inversion it closes with the reason for haste.
Source: Manyoshu
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