Koishiku wa katami ni seyo to waga seko ga ueshi akihagi hana sakinikeri

恋しくは形見にせよと我が背子が
植ゑし秋萩花咲きにけり

Roma-ji: Koishiku wa katami ni seyo to waga seko ga ueshi akihagi hana sakinikeri
English Translation: "When you long for me,
keep this as a token, love,"
so my dearest one
planted autumn bush clover,
and now it has come to bloom.
Meaning: The autumn bush clover my beloved planted, saying, "Keep it as a keepsake when you miss me," has come into bloom.
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2119

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Flowers"
This poem tells how the bush clover the beloved planted, saying to keep it as a keepsake when she missed him, has bloomed. The clover's flowers become the beloved's image, overlaying the loneliness of not meeting with feeling for his thoughtfulness. Like 1966 in the summer poems, which cherished tachibana blossoms as the beloved's traces, it entrusts the beloved's image to flowers.

The first line, "when you miss me," gives the condition.
The second line, "keep it as a keepsake," gives the beloved's words.
The third line, "waga seko ga," uses a woman's word for her beloved.
In the fourth line, "ueshi akihagi," "shi" is the attributive of the past "ki": the clover he planted.
In the last line, "hana sakinikeri," "keri" expresses realization, closing with a heart that thinks of him at the blooming.
Source: Manyoshu
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