Matsuramu ni itaraba imo ga ureshimi to emamu sugata o yukite haya mimu

待つらむに至らば妹が嬉しみと
笑まむ姿を行きて早見む

Roma-ji: Matsuramu ni itaraba imo ga ureshimi to emamu sugata o yukite haya mimu
English Translation: Where she must be waiting,
when I arrive, my dear wife,
so glad to see me,
will smile: that dear figure
I will hurry home to see
Meaning: When I reach the place where she must be waiting, my wife will smile for joy; I long to go and see that smile soon.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2526

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing One's Feelings Directly"
When he reaches his wife, who must be waiting for his return, she will smile for joy; he longs to hurry and see that sight. Picturing the reunion, the man's buoyant anticipation of his wife's smile shows plainly.
This is a poem expressing feelings directly. Where poem 2518 recalls the tears that soaked the sleeves of the wife who saw him off, this poem imagines her smile at their reunion, so the tears of parting and the smile of reunion form a pair.
The author is unknown. The anonymous poems of Book Eleven gather love poems by people whose names have not come down to us.

First line, "matsuramu ni": "to where she must be waiting." "Ramu" is the auxiliary of present conjecture, imagining the wife waiting far away.
Second line, "itaraba imo ga": "if I arrive, my wife." "Itara" is the irrealis form of the verb "itaru," and with "ba" it sets a hypothetical condition.
Third line, "ureshimi to": "saying she is glad." The stem of the adjective "ureshi" takes the suffix "mi," followed by "to," showing the wife's joy.
Fourth line, "emamu sugata o": "the figure that will smile." "Ema" is the irrealis form of the verb "emu," and the auxiliary "mu" expresses conjecture, presenting the smile he imagines.
Fifth line, "yukite haya mimu": "I will go and see it soon." The auxiliary "mu" expresses intention, closing with a heart that hurries toward reunion.
Source: Manyoshu
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