The Year of the Dragon

This is my first newsletter of the year 2024. I am grateful to start my new year with good health and happiness. I look forward to connecting with you again in the new year.

This year I celebrated the year-end holidays in Japan as is my ritual.

In Japan, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are very significant events in the year.

We recall and give thanks for each moment that occurred during the year.

And we welcome the coming year with hope, peace, and health for our families.

Winter in Japan is cold, but I love it because the breezes arriving from the sea and mountains and the clear blue skies are pleasant and beautiful. On these sunny pre-New Year's afternoons, I walk past my former elementary school, down the hill, through the park where I used to walk my dog when I had him, and to the station. The area around the station is always fun and lively before New Year’s Eve. I stop by a bookstore and a general store, go to my favorite clothing store, and finally look for a side dish for dinner at the food store in Tokyu’s Depa-Chika (the basement level of the department store which usually is for the groceries). I used to be a carnivore, but now I prefer simple Japanese food. I especially choose seasonal vegetables and fish. 

My mother is 87 years old and lives alone. As her daughter, who comes and goes home from time to time, my duty is to support (Mimamori in Japanese ) her daily life, not to disrupt her daily routine. (I do not want to be nosy in the name of filial piety.) We go about our daily lives as normal for both of us (I am very mindful of this). But sometimes I can't stop myself from trying to make time to cook something delicious and eat together. My mother and I usually live alone, so having meals together is very important to us. We often get into fights during conversations, though.

Now, my mom’s house in Japan has no internet and an analog landline phone. TV is a free service, digital terrestrial reception that all citizens can see. Subscu (short for “subscription channels") is not available because there is no internet connection in mom’s house. Japanese society is becoming increasingly digitalized, but many elderly people are being left behind, regardless of an aging society (one in four women and one in five men are over 70 years old). 

Shopping is also going cashless. They can pay with an app downloaded to their Smaho (short for smart phone), such as PayPay or Ponta, and they can also earn points. I wonder what they would do if they lost their phones. And I didn't know Japanese banknotes will be newly remade in July 2024 for the first time in 20 years. It will be soon, won't it? The new banknotes will be printed with the latest printing technology. Here are some examples. 3D holograms in which printed portraits will emerge in three dimensions and rotate depending on the angle of view. Suki-ire is an anti-counterfeiting technique expressed by subtly changing the thickness of the paper. Deep intaglio printing will be used, characterized by a rough texture to the touch depending on the area.

The new banknotes will be used for a variety of reasons, such as to reveal undisclosed deposits, including cabinet saving (Keeping money in the sock drawer) , reduce the infrastructure costs of cash payments, and improved security of cashless payments which can make them safer, easier, and more transparent.

According to the "Cashless Roadmap 2022" published by the Cashless Promotion Council, Japan has a surprisingly low cashless payment ratio of 36%.

In contrast, the ratio is 93.6% in neighboring South Korea, where the Korean government has been promoting cashless payment since the Asian currency crisis of 1997, and businesses have been quick to introduce access by making it mandatory for businesses with a certain income to handle credit cards. Zero Pay is a mobile payment service that uses QR codes for payment. With 0% commission, there is no burden on the business. The consumer side also has advantages, such as the fact that cashless payments are deductible from income, and this process has gained public support. China is at 83%, and I don't know if it is public support or if it is inevitable, but under the Xi administration, which is focusing on expanding domestic demand, it seems that cashless systems are being managed so that the source of funds for national income and the place of payment can be clearly identified. So it is said that they are afraid to be traced if they go abroad for binge shopping. The following countries are Australia at 67.7%, the UK at 63.9%, and the USA at 55.8%. Japan lags behind in cashless transactions because of the reliability of cash, public safety, convenience of ATMs, disadvantages of the financial burden on businesses, and the large elderly population.

In other words, partly for the reason of wanting to protect my mother, I do not want to catch up to the cashless payment ratio. I don't want her life to be weighed down too heavily by technology. I think some people should have right to choose not to have cell phones. Even if they live an analog life, they should still have a system that allows them to stay within the social system.

Now at my mom's house again, I was listening to music from a speaker that was connected to bluetooth from my phone. 

My mother said, “What are you listening to?” 

“Oh, Mom, do you listen to Kobukuro?” And I played a song by Kobukuro from Spotify. 

Then she said, "How many songs do you have by Kobukuro?“ 

I said, “Oh, I have a lot of songs.”

”Oh, I see. I'm going to buy the new CD when it comes out. They sing great songs, don't 

they?” 

She, my analog mother, was listening to that song and was amazed at how many things a small smartphone could do so conveniently. But for her, the smartphone is an unknown world. I think many people, including my mother, are living in these advancing times with anxiety, recognizing the technology.

I mentioned earlier that sometimes I fight with my mother. I made my mom get upset like detonating a landmine by bringing up a story that she didn’t want to be touched on. Not knowing its delicate and unstable parts, but the fast-paced society is definitely scaring her.

We live in an era where the state of the nation and society that promotes digitalization is being questioned. Although it seems that individual human rights and freedom of thought have improved compared to before, I can't help but feel a fear that great constraints are still hanging over us.

I wrote about the similar story in my December 2022 newsletter,“Segregate. Separate. Detach” Please read it if you like. https://www.textilesyuh.com/newsletter/segregate-separate-detach

This is the year of the Dragon.

The Chinese character for "dragon" is derived from the Chinese character for "to shake," and represents the state in which all things in nature vibrate, and plants and trees grow and become vigorous with vitality. 

Let's move forward this year while paying attention to the vibration of the dragon. Let's persevere through the good and the bad.

The scarf of this month is The Dragon’s Omens.

Merino wool 100% adornment: 100% sheep skin

There is an expression,"touching the reverse scale.”

The legends said that a dragon's scales grew along with them from birth, never shedding. 

There was only one exception: that was a scale that grew in reverse. It was located under their necks, and that was where all the dragon's heart blood converged. It was also their weak point.

So this reverse scale is a forbidden area to dragons. No one had better touch it, or make the dragon's angry. 

Thank you for reading my newsletter January + February 2024.

-Yuh Okano