A year of action and challenges
Mariko Tagami
With the start of spring upon us, 2023 has officially begun!
Since last week, we have been able to feel the warmth of the sun during the day, and Utsushiki's mascot cat, Gin-chan, can now be seen sunbathing at the entrance to the shop.
Everyone, in 2023
Have you started anything new or set any goals?
In 2023, Jupiter, which is astrologically known as the ``lucky star, the star of expansion,'' will enter Aries, meaning that the actions you take and new things you start this year will definitely bear fruit from 2026 onwards!
So, this year, the only thing we can do is take action!
They say that you should definitely try anything you've always wanted to do.
Personally, one thing I've started doing this year is aerobic exercise.
When I think about the balance between mind and body, I realize that I have focused too much on strengthening my mental health over the past year.
Before I moved to Fukuoka, I didn't have a car, so I basically lived by walking. I remember walking a lot, even in the city.
Especially after giving birth, I was walking outside all day, taking my son for walks, and carrying a stroller, my son's clothes, toys, and a lot of other stuff with me, so it was a tough day.
Since I got my driver's license, I hardly walked at all and my son started going to nursery school, so I didn't do any exercise at all other than going for walks and the occasional yoga class.
You could say that I avoided it because of time and raising children, but I think I was simply assuming that I couldn't exercise at my current level or that I wouldn't be able to make the time to exercise.
Because if you try, you can do it.
I tried it and it was fun and refreshing.
Above all, it gives you confidence.
Recently, my son had been reluctant to go to kindergarten because he wasn't good at the horizontal bar, but he suddenly came home saying, "I did it on the horizontal bar!"
He was afraid of the height of the horizontal bar and was unable to even stand on the ring, but apparently he was able to do it when he tried.
It must have taken a lot of courage for my son.
It is important to reassure them that it is okay if they can't do it.
After all, the implication is that "it can't be done"
This incident at the start of the new year made me realize once again that it is always important for an individual to have the strength to overcome things on their own.
Speaking of which, the other day while I was working at Utsushiki, the Ono family's eldest daughter, Touka, came up to me and said, with a sparkle in her eyes, "It's so nice when you can do something you couldn't do before!" She was so cute, and it seems she had just set a new record in skipping rope.
Let's make this a year in which both our children, who will be able to do many more things from now on, and us adults, take on new challenges!
Have a great week this week too~♡
Mariko Tagami
