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Well, the popular historical drama Yoshitsune has come to an end, and what an
end it was. Every year Japan's NHK public television network (the Domo-kun
people) makes one breathtakingly beautiful samurai-era drama called the Taiga
Drama, and this year's was Yoshitsune (yo-shee-TSOO-nay), the story of a
popular folk hero in a war that preceded the Kamakura Shogunate of 1192. Last
night the final episode aired, detailing the dramatic last battle of
Yoshitsune and his retainers, especially his bodyguard Musashibo Benkei, who
fought so hard for his lord that he died while standing on his feet and who
has folk hero status in his own right. Taking its cues from the historical
dramas of the BBC, Japan has a strong tradition of reliving its history
through "jidai geki" (period dramas, where the word Jedi comes from). It's a
very entertaining way for Japanese of all ages to learn about their history.
It's common to see pop idols and other popular actresses widen their appeal
with fans by appearing in jidai geki, such as former Morning Musume idol Maki
Gotoh, who played Yoshitsune's sister.
We got a shock last night: we heard the air-raid siren that goes off every day
at noon to signal lunchtime, but at 3 in the morning, which meant there was a
fire somewhere in the city. We looked out the window, not expecting to be able
to see anything, but were surprised to see a wall of flame and sparks shooting
up just a few houses down from us. By the time I got there, the house had
already been consumed by fire, and our local fire department was rushing to
get water on it. Happily, no one lived in the house, but it was still a real
shame, as it was a beautiful old-style Japanese home with real clay kawara
tiles. They're still checking for the cause, but arson is feared.
Japan is a great place, with a lot to offer anyone who lives here, but the
complexities of society can be too much for some people, who opt out of their
rest of their lives through suicide. A staggering 30,000 Japanese choose to
take their own lives each year, about the same number as in the U.S. despite
the fact that Japan has half America's population. There are various reasons
for the high suicide rate, of course -- those with failed businesses and lots
of debt are a prime group in post-Bubble Japan, as are young people who face
"ijime," teasing bordering on psychological torture. Perhaps he biggest reason
is the near total lack of a psychological help network, and an innate
resistance to seeking help or counseling by people here. In recent years
there's been an increase in online suicide groups who forms pacts and die
together, often in the eerie forest known as Aokigahara Jukai, a "sea of
trees" near Mt. Fuji. Tragically, no less than three separate group suicides
were discovered on Sunday in Osaka, Nagoya and Sapporo, with a total of ten
people ending their lives together. I personally can't understand the impetus
to willingly join the living-impaired -- I mean, life is good, and if it's not
for some reason, wait a while and things will get better. Each of us has a
mysterious ability to change anything about our lives we want by improving our
basic attitudes about life, so be "mae-muki" (MAH-eh MOO-kii, a really
positive Japanese word I like that literally means "forward facing") and
tomorrow will be a better day.
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