Waga seko o ado kamo iwamu musashino no ukera ga hana no toki naki mono o

我が背子をあどかも言はむ武蔵野の
うけらが花の時なきものを

Roma-ji: Waga seko o ado kamo iwamu musashino no ukera ga hana no toki naki mono o
English Translation: This dear man of mine—
how shall I put it into words?
Like Musashino's
quiet flower of ukera,
there is no time I do not long.
Meaning: How can I speak of my dear husband? Like the ukera flower of Musashino, there is never a moment I do not think of him.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3379

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Sōmon (Love Exchanges)"
How can she put her love for her husband into words, a woman asks, when she thinks of him constantly like the ukera flower of Musashino? The plain flower that blooms a long while carries an unchanging love.
It is one of the Musashi poems. Following 3376, the phrase "Musashino no ukera ga hana no" appears again, showing the flower as an emblem of love on Musashino.
The poet is unknown. The Azuma uta are thought to have been sung among the people of the eastern provinces, and they are marked by plain, open-hearted expression mixed with local dialect.

First line, "waga seko o": The poem opens with a woman's word for her husband or lover.
Second line, "ado kamo iwamu": "Ado" is an eastern word for "how," and "kamo" asks a question.
Third line, "musashino no": Musashino named, leading with the fourth line to the same flower.
Fourth line, "ukera ga hana no": The same line as in 3376: the plain flower blooming on and on.
Final line, "toki naki mono o": "Toki naki" means no set time, always, and "mono o" is exclamatory.
Source: Manyoshu
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