This story is wrtten by Fr. Thomas Tehan.
Growing Old Gracefully
Japanese women live longer than any other women in the world. While I can not explain the reasons for the longevity of Japanese women, I would like to share with you how Mrs. Takako Yanamisawa planned and enjoyed the celebration of her 88th birthday is called Beiju. The word is comprised of two chinese characters: bei, meaning rice, and juwhich has various meanings including age, one's natural life, longevity or congratulations.
In Japan, almost everyone celebrates two birthdays. The first birthday is on New Year's Day and is the same for everyone. It is call Shogastu, or full moon, and a year is added to veryone's age. The second birthday is the actual date of birth. Takako planned to celebrate both of her birthdays with a party in January and another around May 6th, her actual birth date.
Columban Mission, December 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment