Osaka is the most densely populated prefecture in Japan, and when I walk away from our house near City Hall, I soon get into a bleak industrial and residential area by the river Akutagawa (sound familiar from the literary prize?). However, as in many areas of Japan, elderly volunteers tend a long patch of greenery along the river. Limited to four photos, I cannot show the profusion of early spring flowers, but here are some scenes that show the atmosphere of colorful greenery.
Incidentally, when I was in the hospital I talked in Japanese with a muscular man in his early 70s who had had a heart attack and bypass operation. Since he had a house, I assume he had a family, but the photos he showed me were of the vegetables he grows in a rented patch. Unlike younger people who only seem to want convenience, the man reminded me of the values the elderly volunteers along the river are trying to pass on.
