On my social media, I see a lot of posts about Japan.
Posts like:
The Japanese Walking Method
The Japanese Morning Exercise
Japanese Secret Of Longevity
Japanese Cleaning Method
How The Japanese Kept Skinny
The list goes on and on!
Some might have some merit. When I first saw the title "The Japanese Walking Method", I thought that everyone knows how to walk, so what's so special about Japanese walking? It turns out to be interval walking: warm up by walking at a usual pace, then walk briskly for 3 minutes, and then return to normal pace for 3 minutes. Keep doing this until you've walked for 30 minutes. I've tried it, and it feels good. I can't do 30 minutes yet, I'm up to 15 minutes, which is a good start!
The Japanese Morning Exercise is nothing new in Japan. It started in 1928, as part of the celebrations of the enthronement of Emperor Hirohito.
It is still broadcast today on the radio and TV. Driving past some companies in the early morning, I've seen everyone outside doing the exercises. When my kids were in school, they were supposed to go to school at 6am to do these exercises. They never made it, 6am during the holidays is far too early!
The other trends that I mentioned, I haven't looked into, so I won't comment on them.
What I'm wondering is, do people who have never been to Japan have an image of the Japanese as very healthy, living long, productive lives, with sparkling clean houses and never getting fat?
I will admit that older people in Japan do seem to be in a better shape than in other countries that I've had experience of. Sometimes it's a case of survival. The Japanese pension falls short of providing enough money to live on. Some people in their 80s have to work to be able to pay bills and have money to buy food. Japanese welfare is based on the family taking care of and being responsible for those who can't work. If you don't have any family, then the state will help, but it's not a lot of help. There was a case last week where a 79-year-old man killed his 100-year-old mother as he felt his health was deteriorating and he couldn't keep on taking care of his mother, who was bed-bound! I thought that was so sad that a man, almost 80 years old, felt that the only choice he had was to kill his mother. They had some help, from my understanding (I'm watching this news in Japanese) care caregivers were going to the house a few times a week to help the mother bathe. Apparently, there is an increase in older people taking care of older relatives!
Some of the people around here are rather sprightly! I see them out in the fields, walking along the roads at rather a brisk rate. But when I go to the doctors, I see people who are alive because of the medicine they take. They leave the pharmacy with a plastic bag full of medicine, which is usually for one month! These individuals are usually non-responsive in wheelchairs, just drooling!
The other trend that makes me want to throw something at my computer is the Japanese Cleaning Method.
Again, Japan is a mixed bag of people. Some are fastidious; everything has to be in its place, everything has to be spotless. Then there are those who don't care, even to the point of hoarding!
A few years ago, David was working with one of my husband's friends. He had a company that would do different jobs, such as gardening, and helping to move house. Cleaning etc. Basically, a handyman company.
The company was asked by a rental agency to clean an apartment that a woman in her 40s had been renting. She hadn't cleaned it in years; she actually got a different apartment because she couldn't get into the first one!
David said it was awful. In every room, there was trash, up to his shoulders in most rooms! He started in the bathroom, where he found bags of used sanitary napkins! The bags were so old that as he lifted one, it split, and the contents went everywhere! It took four men 5 days to clean the place!
On the other end was one of my friends. Her house was spotless. When we visited one time, she served us some tea. As soon as we finished drinking, she took the cups, washed them and put them away! They had 3 boys in elementary and junior high school at that time, but the place looked like it was from a magazine!
I think with these trends, it's easy for people who have never been to Japan to see it as some kind of paradise! And I will admit that Japan is a good place to live, but like all countries, it's not 100% great; some things could be better!
Recently on YouTube, there have been some videos about the great education system in Finland, I think it was Finland! I wonder if people who live in Finland see these videos and roll their eyes at them?
A few photos from the garden. It's still very warm here, I think yesterday broke the record for the warmest start of December. Today, as well, it's 17C!
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| Neighbour's tree |
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| I love the reds that are starting to show up. |
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| It's so warm that there are still butterflies about! |
