On Friday the 23rd of September, Japan celebrates Autumnal Equinox Day (shuubun no hi) to recognize the meteorological change in seasons.  On this day, based on the astronomically determined tilt of the earth, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west making day and night exactly equal in length.

Along with traditional spiritual significance, the Autumnal Equinox brings anticipation for the coming of koyo, the autumn leaf viewing season.

While days have remained warm, the cooler nights remind me of the advance of autumn, my favorite season.  Aging has intensified the weather’s profound physiological and psychological effects on my moods and movements. I change with the temperature, the moisture, the wind … as they change, so do I. My morning walks with Toma remind me of that.

So looking forward to Japan’s magical fall season.  The kaleidoscopic pageant that the leaves put on is sensational.

On Monday September 19 Japan celebrated its Keiro no Hi or “Respect for the Aged Day”, a public holiday. As the name suggests, it’s a day to honor and respect the country’s elderly citizens.

It was a day to feel good about yourself. There are times I feel like a spare part put on a shelf and forgotten. I have no wish to dwell on the past ….. Only the future. Onward.

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The celebration of Japan’s longevity is also a reminder of the country’s deepening demographic woes. However, the issue of aging population is a global phenomenon.

According to recent world population reports, Japan is at 28 percent, followed by Italy at 23 percent. Finland, Portugal, and Greece are at just under 22 percent. The percentage of China’s population age 65 or above is 12 percent, 16 percent in the United States, 6 percent in India, and 3 percent in Nigeria. Southern Europe, which includes such countries Croatia, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia and Spain, is the oldest region in the world with 21 percent of the population ages 65+.

Typhoon Hinnamnor threatens Japan and has buffeted islands southeast of Okinawa with sustained winds of 120 miles per hour and gusts of up to 172 miles per hour.

The Japan Meteorological Agency forecasts that Hinnamnor would most likely head north toward the Korean Peninsula, warning that the storm could drop more than seven inches of rain on the islands and potentially bring enough force to destroy homes. It is not certain how this storm will impact the Tokyo area.

Typhoon Hinnamnor provides further evidence that climate change increases the frequency of major storms because a warmer ocean provides more of the energy that fuels them.