生涯忘れない年末年始の思い出

　荒涼とした寒い冬の季節にあって、今を盛りに燃えてる植物は意外に多く、それらは概して赤い実が生ってる植物です。写真上はピラカンサツで、また、発音が倉賀野町に似てる「クロガネモチ」です。私たち人間に対し、どんな状況になっても挫けず「元気を出しなさい。」と示唆してるようです。今宵、我が家で開かれる忘年会の雰囲気を予測しているかのようでもあります。

　全国的には自然災害や山火事が各地で起こり、早い復興を願ってやみません。群馬県では先日６０台以上の車が絡む大事故が関越自動車で起こりました。しかし、関係者のご努力により予想を超え、早期に復旧しました。いろいろあった令和７年ですが、特筆すべきは「女性総理大臣誕生」です。日本の歴史で初めてであり、日本のみならず世界からも活躍が期待されてます。私たち一人ひとりは事故や病気に気をつけ、年末年始も自らめざしす道を進みたいものです。

　年末年始と言えば、私には思い出深い２０代があります。ヒマラヤ山脈の西に位置し、雪が積もるカシミールで湖に浮ぶハウスボートというホテル内で今は亡き友人Ｆさんと新年を迎えたことです。日本との時差は３時間半なので、現地では３１日の夜８時半に「日本は今頃、新年だね」と乾杯したことです。翌日一月一日には生まれて初めて馬に跨り、広大な景色を眺めつつ近くの山を散策しました。もう半世紀以上も前のことです。

Dear my friends and people in Kashmir

　Amid the cold, bleak scenery winter, there are surprisingly many plants, generally bearing red berries. The one in the top photo is a pyracanthus, while the one in the bottom right is a round leaf holly pronounced similarly to the name "Kuragano-machi" in Japanese. It seems to be urging us humans to persevere and stay strong, no matter the circumstances. It's as if they're predicting the atmosphere of the year-end party being held at my home tonight.

　Natural disasters and wildfires have occurred across the Japan, and we sincerely hope for a speedy recovery. In my Gumma Prefecture, a major accident involving over 60 vehicles occurred recently on the Kan-Etsu Expressway. However, thanks to the efforts of all involved, recovery was quicker than expected. While the year 2025 has been full of events, one notable milestone is the birth of a lady prime minister. This is the first time in Japanese history that such a feminist movement has been achieved, and expectations are high not only in Japan but around the world. Each of us must be careful to avoid accidents and illness, and continue to pursue the path we aim for over the New Year's holiday.

　Speaking of New Year's holidays, I have fond memories from my 20s. I welcomed the New Year with my late friend Mr. Fukuda in a houseboat hotel on a lake in snowy Kashmir in India, west of the Himalayas. There is a three and a half hour time difference with Japan, so we toasted at 8:30 pm on the 31st, saying, "It's New Year in Japan right now." The next day, on January 1st, I mounted a horse for the first time in my life and went for a walk in the nearby mountains, seeing in the vast scenery. That was more than half a century ago.

忘年会はあと二つ・・・寂しくありません

　今日１２月２６日は官庁官庁御用納めです。もう遠い昔になりますが、振り返ると私の現役時代は高校の吹奏楽部顧問をしていたことから、冬休みは群馬県では万場高原荘や北毛青年の家で、長野県では小諸青年の家で４０名程が合宿したことが思い出されます。練習の合間には、屋外では雪合戦したり、室内では男女でフォークダンスのオクラホマミキサー、マイムマイム、コロブチカなどを、皆、嬉しそうにしてた顔が思い出されます。

　私が弾くピアノに合わせ、ピアノを囲むように円を作って踊りました。当時の部員たちはすでに還暦前後ですが、青春の思い出となってるでしょう。実は私にとってこれが昨日も行なった「いきいき健幸クラブ」に役立ってます。昨日は「マイムマイム」のピアノ伴奏をしました。やはり、皆さん楽しそうです。

　ところで、今年もあと６日です。日没時刻は１２月８日頃が１６時２８分と年間で最も早かったですが、今日は１６時３５分予定です。このため、日の入りはすでに７分も陽が伸びてます。しかし、日の出は１月８日頃が最も遅くなります。

　一方、日本人の私たちには考えにくいことですが、南半球では季節が逆であり、私の飲み友達であったスペンスさんの住むニュージーランドでは現在が夏であり、今頃は南十字星の下で真夏のクリスマス、真夏のお正月になり世界は広いです。彼とは一年間、高崎商業高校でいっしょだったので親しくなりました。いつの日か会えるでしょうか。フェイスブックでは度々「いいね」を戴き有難い時代です。

　ところで、忘年会はあと二つになりました。今宵はいつもの某所でブログのコメンテーター「時計屋の隣りさん」と、また、２９日【月】にはラジオ体操会やゴミ収集など地区のために頑張ってる近所の役員の方々と、一年間のお疲れを癒して戴くため私の家で燃える予定です。

Dear my Facebook friends who are crazy about year-end-party

　Today, December 26th, marks the last day of work for prefectural government agencies. It's been a long time, but looking back my life, I recall as a high school brass band advisor, during winter break, about 40 of students would hold training camps at Manba Kogenso and Hokumo Youth House in Gumma Prefecture, and Komoro Youth House in Nagano Prefecture. In between practices, students would have snowball fights outdoors, and indoors, boys and girls would dance folk dances such as Oklahoma Mixer, Maim Maim, and Kolobchka. I remember the happy faces by everyone.

　As I played the piano, they formed a circle around the piano and danced. The students at that time showa era are now around 60 years old I, guess, but this is surely a memory of their youth. Actually, this has been helpful for me in the "Ikiiki Health Club," which we held yesterday as well. Yesterday, I accompanied the piano for "Maim Maim of Israeli fork music." As expected, everyone seemed to be fun.

　By the way, there are only six days left in 2025. The earliest sunset of the year was around December 8th, at 4:28pm, but today it will be at 4:35pm. This means that the daylight hours in the evening have already extended by seven minutes. However, the latest sunrise will be around January 8th 2026.

　Meanwhile, although it's hard for us Japanese to imagine, the seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere. It's currently summer in New Zealand, where my drinking buddy Mr. Spence lives, and around this time of year, it's midsummer Christmas and New Year's under the Southern Cross, I guess. The world is big. We became close friends after attending Takasaki Commercial High School for a year. I wonder if we'll meet someday? I'm grateful to receive so many likes on Facebook these days.

　Not change the subject, but there are only two more year-end parties left. Tonight I will be burning at the usual place with blog commentator "The Watch Shop Neighbor," and on the 29th I will be burning at my house with the neighbors who work hard for the area, holding radio gymnastics sessions and collecting trash, to help them relax after the year's hard work.

今年一年を振り返り、新年からは行動力ある年に

　昔から「旅は道連れ、世は情け」といわれ、旅行は一人で行くより、一緒に行く人がいるとずっと楽しく、同様に、人生途上では「人間は互いに助け合って、この世を渡ってゆくのが賢明」と言うことでしょう。ところが、一人での生活のため、最近の私は遠出することがなく、愛車ＴＴを運転する機会が少なくなってます。行先は「吉井の日帰り温泉」であったり、喫茶「さんぽ道」へ行くくらいの近場です。これでは動きが少ないです。

　人間の身体や脳と同様に、車はある程度は動かさないとスムースな機能維持に良くないでしょう。それでも、車体の外面はコーティングしてあるので時々は水洗いして埃を落とし、光沢だけは保ってます。このため、いつでも遠出はスタンバイです。果たして道連れは現れるでしょうか。

　一方、私たち人間はこれと言った目的なしにいると、受け身のみの生活となり、脳が錆び付く傾向と考えられ、延いては新たな発想や、人間として大切な創造性を磨くことが鈍るでしょう。このためにも、旅を通して新鮮な情報をこの目で捉え、刺激を享受し、今までとは違うものの見方や生き方をしたいものです。それには自らをいつも同じ環境のみに置かないで、新たなステージに立たせたいものです。早くも明後日は冬至、歳月は人を待たずです。「よしっ！」動きのある年末にしよう。

Dear my friends both in Southern and Northern hemispheres.

　It's been said since ancient times in Japan that "Traveling is much more enjoyable with company than traveling alone. Similarly, it's also true that, as we live through life, "it's wise for humans to help each other through this world." However, because I live alone, I don't travel far these days, and I have fewer opportunities to drive my beloved TT. I only go to nearby destinations like the Yoshii hot spring or my favorite cafe "Sampo-michi." This means I'm not moving around much.

　Just like the human body and brain, a car needs to be moved around a certain amount to maintain smooth function. As you can see, still, the exterior of the car is coated, so I occasionally wash it with water to remove dust and maintain its luster. For this reason, I'm always ready for a remote trip. Will I find a companion in the near future?

　On the other hand, if we humans live without a specific purpose in daily life, we tend to live passively, our brains rusting away, which in turn dulls our ability to come up with new ideas and hone our creativity, which is so indispensable for human. For this reason, I want to travel and capture fresh information with my own eyes, enjoy stimulation, and see new things and live in a different way than before. To do this, I want to avoid always putting myself in the same environment, but put myself on a new stage. Here the winter solstice will be the day after tomorrow, and time waits for no man. "Yes!" Let's make this year-end an action-packed one.

愛車も人間も新年を迎え垢ぬけたい

　一年の汚れを落とすため、今日は愛車を自分で洗車し、タイヤワックスを掛けたら見違えるようになりました。そしたら、どうしたことでしょう。その辺を一周したくなり、木部町まで走らせましたら年末のためでしょうか、道路は意外と混んでました。

　一方、人間もそうでしょうが、外出するとき身なりを整える習慣は大切です。一般的に、年を重ねると、室内着と外出着が同じになる傾向と言われます。今後はこれを意識し、(女性の目を気にしつつ？)外出するときは身なりに気をつけたいと思います。

　ところで、今夜は私の家で次女家族と夕食が一緒で、まるで昔に戻ったようです。よく考えると、年を重ねてから、日々の孤食ほど哀れなことはありません。来年は、可能な限り孤食を避けるようにします。フェイスブックのオフ会があったらいいですね。

Dear my overseas friends who are interested in Bottoms up and great music.

　Today I washed my car to get rid of this year's grime, and after applying tire wax, it looks completely different. Then what the matter of my mind? I felt like taking a drive around the area, so I drove to Kibe-town. The roads were surprisingly crowded, probably because it was the end of the year.

　On the other hand, just like humans, we look completely different when we dress well when going out. It is generally said that as we get older, we tend to wear the same clothes indoors and outdoors. I will be mindful of this and take care to dress well when I go out, (while being mindful of lady's eyes.)

　Not change the subject, but tonight I had dinner with my second daughter's family at my home, and it felt like I was back in the old days. When I think about it, there is nothing more pathetic than eating alone as we get older. Next year, I will try to avoid eating alone as much as possible. It would be nice if we could have Facebook meetup.

https://ttsreader.com/ja/...

いつまでも維持したい情熱の心

　１２月からラジオ体操会がないので、今朝は７時過ぎまで寝坊してしまい、アクセス戴いてる方には心配をお掛けしました。このところ朝晩は寒冷でも、日中は小春日和の安定した天気が続いてます。しかし、一日一日が静かに過ぎつつ、今年の終わりに近づいてます。この一年、健康であったことに感謝しつつ、庭の真っ赤な植物たちのように、今後、情熱を持って暮らせたらと意気込んでます。

　私にとって、情熱とは「自らに課題があること」で、それに突き進む強い心が必要と思ってます。私の課題の一つは抗酸化作用のある「健康食材の研究」です。また、五感のうち特に視覚、聴覚、味覚などが衰えずに、いつまでも周囲の光景がはっきり見え、一人暮らしであっても、友人知人、近所の方々と楽しい会話が不自由なくできるよう「耳の健康」のため週一度は近くの耳鼻科で診察してもらってます。果たして、ピアノなど耳から入る美的感性をいつまでも培い、維持できるでしょうか。

　今年も大地震や洪水など自然災害が起こり、被害に遭われた方々は大変な事態でした。心より復興を願ってます。一方、嬉しかったことの一つに新１万円札、新５千円札、新千円札が発行され、初めて手にしたときは感動して、もったいなくて半分に折れませんでした。しかし、不思議なことに、時代の変遷でしょう。私自身、買い物では殆どクレジットカードによる支払いであり、新札を使うことは「飲み屋」へ行くときくらいです。飲み代を払うとき、初めは新札を使うのがもったいなかったです。もう慣れたので、また行ってみよう。

【日本文と英文に多少の差異があります。】

Dear my overseas friends who are interested in nature and great music

　Because there is no radio gymnastics event since December, I overslept until after 7 this morning, and I'm sorry for worrying those who have accessed my site. Although it has been cold in the morning and evening recently, the weather has been stable like an Indian summer during the day. However, each day passes quietly as the end of this year approaches. I am grateful for my health this year, and I am determined to live my life with passion, like the bright red plants in my garden.

　For me, passion means "having a challenge for myself," and I need a strong will to push forward with it. One of my challenges is "researching antioxidant healthy ingredients." And I go to a nearby ENT doctor once a week to keep my ears and nose healthy so that I can see the scenery around me clearly. Even though I live alone, I'd like to have fun conversations with friends, acquaintances, and neighbors without any problems in ears, especially my sight and taste. Can I really maintain my aesthetic sensibility through playing piano from now on?

　This year, natural disasters such as major earthquake and flood have caused in Japan, and it has been a terrible experience for those who have been affected. I hope for a speedy recovery to the core. On the other hand, one thing that made me happy was the issuance of new 10,000 yen, 5,000 yen, and 1,000 yen bills. When I first held them in my hands, I was so moved that I didn't fold them in half because I didn't waste them. However, strangely enough, I guess this is a sign of the times. I almost always pay with my credit card when I shop, and only use new bills when I go to the favorite tavern named "Buku". When I first paid for drinks, I felt it was a waste to use the new bills. But now I'm used to it, so I'll go again as a year end party with thinking of together with you.

https://ttsreader.com/ja/...