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| Part 1 Autumn at the Age of 71 |
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At Tsurunoyu in the Spa Village "Nyuto"
in Akita Prefecture |
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| I am one year over the age of Koki |
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I became 71 years old this May, 2011 (Heisei 23).
It means I exceeded the year called as "Few people live to be seventy"
(人生七十古来稀なり) by the Chinese poet Toho (杜甫)" last year. However, the
age of 70 is no longer an old age in Japan. It's the age before a man's
average life expectancy, and a woman lives 15 years more.
I was born in 1940 in Shingu City, south of Wakayama Prefecture. At the
time, it was a farming and fishing town of Miwasaki Ward facing Kumano
Nada Sea, one railway station west of the Shingu city center. My parents
were running a grocery store with a good view of the coast from the second
floor.
It was the year 2600 A.D. in Japan, and so, was celebrated by the whole
nation.
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mother, myself, niece, sister, father
July, 1940 |
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I now live on the 11th floor of an apartment complex in Urayasu City, near
central Tokyo, with Emiko, my wife, who will welcome Koki (the age of 70)
this September. The sea of Tokyo Bay which I could see toward across the
JR Keiyo Line until a few years ago is now blocked by other condominiums
before I knew it. In the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, Urayasu
City including this apartment was damaged to some extent.
The age of Koki is special to me. It is a milestone in my life. I got over
my father's lifespan.
Born in a particularly poor family when Miwasaki was a fishing village,
my father, Shigezo, the eldest of eight children, could not go even to
elementary school, and from the age of 16 spent 17 years as a diver collecting
pearls and pearl shells in the Arafura Sea in the Southern Ocean, a waters
area sandwiched between Australia and Indonesia.
One year after I was born, the Pacific War broke out. My father volunteered
for military service and was rejected for conscription examination. Nevertheless,
he volunteered again for the country throwing himself into the Yamada Coal
Mine in Fukuoka Prefecture. Three years later, he could return home after
being saved from fatal illness due to the end of the war.
Compared to my father, I think that at least living longer is a way to
return the favor to my father.
I don't mind the occupation column "unemployed" (無職).
Exercise is more for stopping decline than enjoyment. .....
Blurred eyes, teeth not meshing, metabolic syndrome, forgetfulness, and
a hangover. Especially essential for the left side of the handicap.
Overseas travel is bothersome, and the dealing with the outside world has
become annoying. Writing hobby is also slowing down.
Recently I attend any meetings rarely with junior high, senior high school, and university alumni associations and Daido Steel's colleagues.
The motivation for community activities has also almost disappeared. I withdrew from the senior organization "AA Net" in Urayasu at the end of September, and not positive in UIFA (Urayasu International Exchange Association).
How much am I losing friends and associates due to such reasons? Even if I feel like drinking at a tavern, who will be a partner?
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| I should not leave the change in life pattern to a downward spiral curve
as it is. Even if it is unavoidable for the physical strength to decline,
I want to maintain my willpower as it is. It is the beginning of a new
section in Ekiden (a long-distance relay road race). I want to pass the
baton to tomorrow steadily. I want to have fun as far as I can. |
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| I am going to insert an essay in a shelf written this January below. |
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| Golf lesson, started and stopped |
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The tennis school I attend once a week started a new golf lesson course
last April, and I decided to take a lesson. Under the guidance of Mr. Nishio
(a coach), the course lasts for one and a half hours from 9:15 a.m. every
Friday, in a small space. It is adjacent to the futsal stadium far smaller
than a driving range, but I don't care.
There are 5 members. Everyone wears as he likes, and I am with a polo shirt,
training pants and tennis shoes.
To get started, do 15 minutes of preparatory exercises for stretching.
This is the blessing of the morning for me. My body is moderately relaxed
and I feel refreshed.
Next, we start the lesson, and in the first half we practice short approach
with a sand wedge and an approach wedge. There are three targets, and each
of us is prepared towards one target, aiming at the 10 and 20 yard-target
directly, and hitting an approach shot to the 30 yard sign in the shape
of a small green. The coach guides us with a digital camera.
In the second half, each player uses his favorite iron to hit the mat about
40 yards away. The flying distance can roughly be guessed, but the hitting
form is more important. Isn't it ultimately ergonomic? In other words,
aren't you using extra muscles and swinging uselessly, putting an unbalanced
burden on your body? Is it a reproducible and corrective form?
The 8-iron and 5-iron are my usual clubs, trying the driver from time to
time. This stage is equipped with a fixed shooting device of a video camera,
and you will receive guidance from the coach while checking the pros and
cons of the form by recording. Coach Nishio has been a disciple of Isao
Aoki since his college days, and the master-disciple relationship has been
going on for a long time, and he recently went out to some golf course
with his master.
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When did I begin to use the current set of clubs? Before my brain infarction,
that is, about 30 years ago?
I was amazed to see my teammates' and the coach's drivers there. The face
is three times bigger, and I wonder what kind of material for a head. The
weight seems to be lighter than mine, and the coach says "flight distance
guaranteed, no worry about slices or hooks"
I borrowed the a coach's driver and hit several shots. How hard it is to
me. The shaft is also a few centimeters long, and it does not fit me very
well. The metal head is still the best for me.
............
Looked closely, iron heads are also somewhat different. Besides the shape
and size of the face, also a material and manufacturing method! Concerning
"Lost wax" iron heads, the name itself seems to be on its way
out.
My irons were made of Taylor Made's Lost Wax, and were made by Hitchiner
Manufacturing Co., Ltd., in New Hampshire, USA, a technical partner of
Daido Steel, where I worked at the time. About 30 years ago in Japan, the
lost wax (stainless steel precision casting) irons were the mainstream,
and Maruman sold lost wax irons made by Daido Steel under a certain brand
name. I remember the name of the putter only. "Arnold Palmer."
None of my mates or friends with their own opinions about golf know the
word "lost wax" itself. The coach is also suspicious. Over the
past 30 years, both materials and manufacturing methods seem to have evolved
dramatically. But for me, there is no other ironheads except lost wax.
............
The wedge names are also slightly different. For example, they're not just talking about "approach wedges", but then they add "??%" of the loft angle or whatever.
I was stunned to notice no 3-iron. |
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Back to the golf lesson.
While going around the course, I didn't want to train myself in order to get closer to my bragging ability in the past, but the purpose was to maintain the health of my body as I approached Koki (70 years old). I doubt it just with the tennis school once a week, and my golf swing is an old hand. Brushing rusty clubs with a tawashi and renewing gloves are all I need. The moment I thought about it, the club grips were slippery and cost extra 1,400 yen each. I got better in my own way and it was fun in someway. It was another pleasure to talk with Coach Nishio for a short time. I went to the short course twice and the full-fledged course once. No comment about scores.
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On the course of practical lessons, it was golf shoes that made me recognize a modern Urashima.
Fortunately, I found spiked shoes for the golf course in the back of the
shoe cupboard. Still able to put them on, I brought them with me.
When I changed the shoes and entered the lounge ringing the sound of spikes,
a staff hastily approached me and said, "Spiked shoes are not good."
No way! My mind went blank. In the end, I borrowed spare shoes. |
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I decided to stop going to lessons this April. It's time to say goodbye to golf.
No other reason. This is done, so to speak, in consideration of benefit
by cost. It was a by-blow of my joining the Sports Plaza in June. I will
never forget Coach Nishio's sad face. Awkward farewell. |
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Golf is a buddy I spent most of my salaryman life with. Until I collapsed
from a cerebral infarction at the age of 45, it was the foundation of my
healthy body and helped me with my work. In the 30s, I played at Shin-Chiba
Country Club a couple of times a month as a member, and sometimes under
80 strokes with the handicap of 13
After that, I had to be estranged as a result of having a handicap in the
left side of the body, but until I retired from business society at the
age of 60, it corresponded moderately with me as a supporter for sales
and friendship.
That year, I handed over the management of the company to Yana-san and
put an end to golf without any regret. Since then, this sport was completely
in a different world, and I didn't even watch any TV shows.
A year ago, I resumed just practicing the swing, and now it's my real last
goodbye like this.
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| Part1 Reading: 18' 56" |
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