An episode from history

水流間

Please take a look at these three Japanese kanji characters.
It used to be a name of a place.

It reads “tsu-ru-ma”, which means “a place full of water.”
These are the original characters for the place called "Tsuruma".

In fact, villagers of this area were often bothered by floods from a small, winding river.

However, in 1910, when the city of Nagoya decided to make their first public park at this place by reclaiming the site, they wanted to keep the original name but with different kanji to make a better impression on all the visitors to the new park, that is “鶴舞" (Tsuruma) park.

They use the kanji for "crane” and “dance”, but they still have the same reading.
In Japanese culture, a crane is a symbol of happiness and longevity and it sounds just perfect for the first public park in Nagoya.

A Pair of Muddy Boots

My daughter came home to stay overnight on the way to Ena, a mountainous town in Gifu, which is the prefecture next to ours.

She was on a business trip with her colleagues to a stone wholesale company. Her landscape company does business with them.

Do you know how GOOD it is for a mother to see her daughter home with her backpack?
Besides, she was carrying her helmet and a pair of muddy boots!  Good job.

What I thought about the Respect For The Aged Day

September 19th, the third Monday of September,  was a national holiday named the Respect for the Aged Day.

Various public ceremonies were held in many cities and towns throughout the country.
Our school district held a ceremony at an elementary school gymnasium and invited every person aged 70 or over in our area.

That day I helped at reception with the woman's organization that I am a part of.  Dance and band performances by elementary and junior high students delighted the guests.

 

Japan is becoming an aged society.

There were 34.61 million people as of last week aged 65 or over. This was 27.3 percent of the total population, according to a report.

There are many discussions about this, such as the large tax burden on the younger generation, a quality and quantity of nursery houses for the elderly, and the amount of pension and more.

A Japanese life expectancy has been ranked very high but we have to consider how elderly people pursue a healthy life without being bedridden for the rest of their life.

At the same time, men and women who retired from their companies at the age of 60 or 65, should be promised another regular job so as to keep their enthusiasm toward life as long as they are healthy.