STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS ON OJISAN

2018 June 13

Just finished running at Fukakita Ryokuchi. In total, I only run for 3 km in less than 30 minutes. It’s been a while since I stopped running and it feels good to run again, especially in a big park, where you can do whatever you want without annoying or being annoyed by others.

On my way back, I realized that this park is full of Japanese Ojisans. It’s ten in the morning, they must have already retired so that now they have plenty of time to work out in the park. I wonder what would they think when they see so many others who mirror themselves. Happy? Probably no. Sad? Don’t think this is an accurate expression. Lonely? There might be some sort of loneliness reflected by them but some of them are in groups so I think neither loneliness is completely accurate. I would pick the word nostalgic, as the park is where they used to play around with friends and families during their childhood – so it must have been nostalgic to be here again when you have retired, transforming from a valuable employee or boss or father into an ordinary individual. From low to high and high back to low: this resembles the cycle of life, in which everything has an invisible line that connects one to another while everything is in a cosmic cycle, constantly changing. In this sense, life is a flow of energy. It doesn’t stop absorbing and exchanging energies until you exhale your last breath. So, listen to your breath, to your heart beats, and to the sound and vibration of nature—-the cold and relaxing wind, the falling leaves, the singing birds, the dancing butterflies, the soft and gentle green grass, the shaking shadows of trees and clouds—–and allow yourself to be cultivated by the cosmic rays from the sun, earth, and air.

I think these are what Ojisans would feel when they are jogging, exercising, playing balls, sitting on the benches, walking around, drinking by themselves and so forth. There’s an impulse raised inside me when I see them: that I want to talk to them and ask them about how they feel, that I want to know what kind of life they have been through and now what keep them young. In a sense, I feel as though they were younger than me. My life compared to them is so unhealthy and inorganic. So I guess this is what we can learn from the Ojisans. After all, they are not merely Ojisans. To me, they are yogurts that can stimulate your mind and make your healthier!

Have a nice day. Ojisans! You will always have my respect and gratefulness.