Young people in their 60’s; thoughts for the New Year

It’s a new year.  At this time of year there are three people in my house celebrating birthdays.  My daughter’s birthday is December 31, my granddaughter’s is on January 1, and mine is on January 9.  My birthday is not a happy occasion any more.  It seems like just a little while ago I was welcoming the Adult Day Ceremony [when a person is Japan turns 20] and, in what seems like an instant, I am now 67.  Pretty soon I’ll be 70.  I feel like I’ve been deceived.  At 70 I’m truly elderly aren’t I?  I firmly believe there are no good things when you are getting old.  Fortunately, I still have plenty of hair.  I don’t dye it so my hair is white, and in the past, there was even an expression “romance grey,” but that was an expression for someone in their forties.  After reaching your sixties, ‘poof!’ - any connection to romance vanishes.

Except it’s different for women.  In contrast to the past, women in their sixties today are very young.  Sure, women are skilled at using make-up, but these days movie stars are not the only ones getting minor plastic surgery.   Heck, not only is their outward appearance young, but these women also feel young. The women who come to visit my house are mostly elderly, but they are young!  Things like, “aren’t there any good men out there?” are some of the scary things these women ask me.  When men gather at my house in a similar way, there isn’t this kind of intensity.  First, no words about romance come from their mouths.  The topic of conversation is almost exclusively about their physical condition.  They are excited only when they compete to see who takes the most number of pills.  Even so, men in their sixties living in Los Angeles are still young.

In Japan, when I go there, my former classmates are all genuinely elderly; I look the youngest.  The year before last—quite awhile ago—on the occasion of attending the 50th anniversary of my graduation from junior high, I was surprised that the women were so young, but it was devastating to see that the men were all so elderly.  It was horrible to see baldheads and grey hair.  There were also men with jet-black hair, but it was obvious in one glance they were dying their hair.  I felt pity for these men.  Meanwhile, I was very popular with my elderly women classmates.  I came to the event from America, and even if I don’t

dye my hair, it’s black; what I wear is young, and what I talk about is also young.  However, the feeling of being targeted by elderly young-at-heart women is also scary - I must admit it.  In fact, I skipped last year’s junior high reunion…and avoided any trouble.

So…I wonder what kind of year 2006 will be.  Personally, it appears to be a year in which I’ll be very busy.  As always there is a lot of work.  I will probably have some movie projects but the casting is not yet in place.  Either that or I may start a new business.  In short, I still have plenty of motivation.  However, as always, frequently going to visit the doctor is a pain.  During the writing of the latest installment of “The Crooked Police Chief”  (“Hit by a Bullet”), I had confidence in both my physical and mental strength, and it seems I can again work appropriately hard. Since I’m making a statement declaring I will work the rest of my life, I can’t retire to live a life of ease and play golf.  While dreaming of living on my retirement income, I’ll also have to work hard this year.  Looking young is perhaps due to the struggle to earn a living.

My daughter is planning to graduate from graduate school this spring.  If she does, she will probably work in some university as a professor, so my life will change.  My wife will also return to Japan to deliver a lecture; she is also full of energy.  It seems as if it is the fate of those in my house to work hard.  I am thinking that especially since everyone in my house is healthy, having the ability to work hard is something I really feel thankful for.  That’s about it for me individually, but what is going to happen in world affairs?

That Japan is facing a crucial juncture and the difficulty this entails is widely known, but it seems like the Koizumi Administration will somehow carry on and continue making progress.  The storm will come during the next administration.   For sure, the strained relations with other Asian countries are a problem, but actually, I believe it is not that much to worry about.  Naturally, the biggest problem is the Middle East.  At first glance it would not appear that these faraway countries have the strong direct effect on Japan that Asian countries have, but that is not the case. Japan is a country that can’t make it without America’s protection, so that is already a big problem, and something that won’t change.

I wrote as if I understand world affairs, but more than the world’s situation, my own personal financial situation is much more serious.  Pretty soon, I have to trade in my car for a new one, and, well, where can I get the funds?  I’m assuming that “Hit by a Bullet” (“Hidan”) will be a big hit, but if this assumption is wrong, I’m in real trouble – that is my thought for the new year.