A 70-year-old active psychiatrist tells us
How to age happily and healthily
“Life is not a task, it’s a festival.”

Life has become really long.
The era of living to 100 is just around the corner, and these days, people in their 60s and 70s look young and full of energy, so much so that it feels awkward to call them old.
However, many people still feel anxious that life in old age will be lonely and empty.
Why is that? It's because we still try to live our old age like homework.
The author, a psychiatrist who has cared for people's mental health for nearly 50 years, suggests that we change our perception and attitude toward old age.
In the second half of life, the appearance and direction of life should be different from when you were young.
Rather than worrying about how to solve life's tasks such as social success, material wealth, and building a prosperous family, we should focus solely on ourselves and think about how to enjoy the rest of our lives with a healthy body and mind.

"Life is not a homework assignment, it's a festival" is filled with the author's unique know-how for a happy and healthy old age.
As a psychiatrist with 50 years of experience, he introduces specific methods for taking care of your mind, from practicing mindfulness to building healthy relationships, and finding your own hobbies and taking care of your health.
Just as regular exercise is necessary to maintain a healthy body, if you have ever felt or worried about aging even at a young age, this book will be a great starting point for making life a celebration.

To enjoy a vibrant and enjoyable retirement, regardless of age, you need to have the mindset of cherishing each day with the thought that you are the most precious person in the world.
No, more than that, it requires an optimistic attitude to try your best and enjoy every day.
It's so good that people around me are surprised and say, 'Why are you so peaceful?'
To get that attitude into your body, you need to gradually change the trajectory of your life starting in your 40s or 50s.
--- From "Introductory Remarks - A Time of Celebration for You Who Have Lived Hard"

French philosopher Paul Janet once said:
“For a ten-year-old, one year is one-tenth of his life, but for a fifty-year-old, one year is one-fiftieth of his life.” Even the same one year has a five-fold difference in weight.
In fact, psychology and brain science also show that as we age, we experience fewer "landmark events" in our lives that we remember as meaningful, and thus feel like time passes more quickly.
So how can we slow down the flow of time? By improving the quality of our daily lives, making them "meaningful."
And one of the most representative ways to improve the quality of life is to write a diary.
I especially recommend keeping a diary to people who always say things like, “There’s nothing special going on every day, and life is not fun,” or “I’m bored and listless.”
--- From "Chapter 1 - The most precious gold in the world is now"

Novelist Junichi Watanabe says this in his book, “The Master of Happiness.”
“After drinking or eating, I go to the bathroom and urinate.
There are times when I mutter to myself, 'I'm happy,' while watching the stream of urine reaching the white toilet bowl.
And I whisper 'thank you' to my kidneys, bladder, and urethra for allowing me to urinate properly.”
As a former doctor, he knew that even urinating was not something to be taken for granted, but rather the result of the body's various organs working hard together.
When I see him feeling happy even in such things, I truly admire him and call him a 'master of happiness.'
--- From "Chapter 1 - The most precious gold in the world is now"

As we get older, we have fewer opportunities to try new things or hobbies.
This is because as we get older, we tend to judge and act only within the scope of our familiarity and experiences.
If someone around you suggests that you try something new or do something fun, don't just reject them outright. Instead, try to accept them.
Everyone has different hobbies.
Through other people, I was introduced to a world I had never known before, and surprisingly, that world was something I liked.
--- From "Chapter 2 - Every Road You Walk Is a Flower Road"

“Most of the problems people have start with comparing themselves to others.”
Alubomule Smanasara, a Buddhist priest and world-renowned sage, said:
Many people compare other people's happiness with their own and their own unhappiness with other people's.
We also compare past happiness with the present, and compare future happiness that has not yet arrived with the present.
If this happens, it is inevitable that you will feel unhappy.
The remaining man, I am me.
You have lived hard in your own way up until now.
If you accept yourself as you are, you can share in the joy of your friends' success and happiness, and you won't be frustrated that you're the only one miserable.
Let us only look at ‘my’ happiness, the happiness of ‘now’.

'Kikilppappa', that is, you need to know when to join in and when to leave.
Knowing this timing is the secret to maintaining a good relationship.
As we age, each person's habits and customs become stronger.
No one is willing to change a long-held pattern of behavior, even at the expense of others.
I hope you take this point to heart and use it as a guideline for the relationships you begin in your later years.
--- From "Chapter 3 - Happiness in the Second Half of Life Depends on Relationships"

If you are unable to properly organize your home or mind, it can easily lead to dementia or depression in extreme cases.
On days when you feel down, try to clean up your surroundings on purpose.
At least tidy up the desk or the kitchen.
If you specify a location, it can be cleaned up in just one hour.
Even though it was difficult to start, I felt refreshed once I finished organizing.
'Should I read a book now?', 'Should I go out for a bit?', new energy wells up in me.

--- From "Chapter 4 - Daily Know-How to Feel Refreshing"

There is a very basic way to create good posture.
Straighten your back and look up slightly.
They say that if you raise your gaze by just 30 degrees, your thoughts will change positively.
Conversely, if you look down, your mindset will become negative.
In other words, when you feel depressed for no reason, just straightening your back and looking up a little will make you feel much better.
--- From "Chapter 5 - Health Management Methods You Can Put Into Practice Right Now"

You can be grateful for everything that happens around you.
I call such people 'masters of gratitude.'
When you become a master of gratitude, you become happier than anything else.
And because we often express our gratitude to those around us, those who hear those words also become happy.
(…) I never forget to say ‘thank you’ even for the smallest things.
I am grateful for the bowl of rice that gave me strength today, and for the fact that I was able to get through today safely, as usual.
I firmly believe that the more we express gratitude to those around us, the happier our lives will become.
--- From "Chapter 6 - You Will Be Happy Right Now"

No one has ever had only happy things in their life.
Perhaps that's why God gave us the gift of "old age," a time when we can finally be free from our heavy burdens and live freely and happily. So, let's enjoy our old age to the fullest.
If not, why endure the hardships of youth? Until the day God calls us, let us embrace the time given to us, cherish each day, and live as we are.

--- From "Going Out - The Best Gift from God"