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A Week with Chiharu (91) | Day 5: Finding Joy in the Moment
Japan Solo

A Week with Chiharu (91) | Day 5: Finding Joy in the Moment

A Week with Chiharu is a seven-day glimpse into the life of 91-year-old Chiharu as she spends time with her son Mitsu and me in Buren Bay, Japan. Through ordinary moments, sharing meals, singing, sailing, walking, and simply enjoying each day's adventures- I'm exploring what everyday life ...
A Week with Chiharu (91): An Apetite for Life #japan #agingwell #longevity
Japan Solo

A Week with Chiharu (91): An Apetite for Life #japan #agingwell #longevity

A Week with Chiharu is a seven-day glimpse into the life of 91-year-old Chiharu as she spends time with her son Mitsu and me in Buren Bay, Japan. Through ordinary moments—sharing meals, singing, sailing, walking, and simply enjoying each day's adventures—I'm exploring what everyday life ca...
A Week with Chiharu (91) | Day 3: A New Captain
Japan Solo

A Week with Chiharu (91) | Day 3: A New Captain

This was a special day. It started out with Radio Taiso again early morning then we rowed out to Wahine. It was only the second time I'd sailed with 91-year-old Chiharu. The first was back in April, when I owned and skippered Wahine. One of my favourite memories from that day was watching C...
Day 2: 91 and Ready for Anything
Japan Solo

Day 2: 91 and Ready for Anything

This is Day 2 of spending a week with 91-year-old Chiharu in my little longevity laboratory here in Buren Bay, Japan. It's only the second time we've met. The first was a few months ago when I took her sailing aboard Wahine. Today, Wahine belongs to her son Mitsu, while I remain here cont...
A Mother. A Son.  Genuine Friends. #agingwell #family #japan
Japan Solo

A Mother. A Son. Genuine Friends. #agingwell #family #japan

This week, Mitsu's 91-year-old mother, Chiharu, has joined us in Buren Bay. It's only the second time I've met her. The first was a few months ago when she came sailing with me aboard *Wahine*. Since then, Mitsu has become Wahine's owner and skipper, while I've remained here...
Wahine Is Sailing to Mexico… Without Me
Japan Solo

Wahine Is Sailing to Mexico… Without Me

Sailors have an old saying: "The two happiest days in a sailor's life are the day he buys a boat and the day he sells it." Having recently passed Wahine on to my close friend Mitsu Kume, I now understand why. In fact, I'm doubly happy. Not simply because I'm relieved of ...
Wahine Is Preparing to Cross the Pacific… Without Me
Japan Solo

Wahine Is Preparing to Cross the Pacific… Without Me

For nearly seven years, Wahine has been my home, my office, and my companion on an unforgettable journey around Japan. Now she is preparing for her next adventure. Next year, she'll cross the Pacific...without me. I'll explain more in the coming weeks as one chapter closes and another be...
80 Year Old  Neighbor Rescues My Dingy #japan  #villagelife #community
Japan Solo

80 Year Old Neighbor Rescues My Dingy #japan #villagelife #community

Life in a remote village rarely goes exactly as planned. Today brought two unexpected problems. One was solved by the kindness of an 80-year-old neighbor. The other simply required patience, perseverance, and getting my hands dirty. The longer I live in Japan's remote communities, the more I ...
I’m Back in My Longevity Laboratory #agingwell #japan  #wellness
Japan Solo

I’m Back in My Longevity Laboratory #agingwell #japan #wellness

After a month away, I'm back in my tiny fishing village on Amami Oshima. Twenty-nine people. This has become my longevity laboratory and a base from which I am exploring one simple question: What helps people remain healthy, independent, and engaged well beyond the average healthy lifespan? ...
Why I Never Rush Through Narita
Japan Solo

Why I Never Rush Through Narita

Every few weeks, I pass through Narita. Not just the airport. The town. It has become part of my rhythm. Leaving Tokyo, I slow down before returning to my tiny village on Amami Oshima. Leaving the village, I gather momentum before heading back to Tokyo. I've learned that transitions matter....
Is This Famous Japanese Saying Really True?
Japan Solo

Is This Famous Japanese Saying Really True?

A famous Japanese proverb says: "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down." Yet after years of travelling through Japan's remote communities and researching healthy aging, I've come to a different conclusion. The healthiest communities I've encountered are not those th...
Why I Set Out to Explore Japan’s Longevity Hotspots
Japan Solo

Why I Set Out to Explore Japan’s Longevity Hotspots

Why do some people remain healthy, active, and independent well into their eighties and nineties, while others experience years of decline? That question sent me on a two-year journey across Japan. Using prefectural health and longevity data as my compass, I set out to visit communities where heal...
A Father’s Day Tribute #father #agingwell #community
Japan Solo

A Father’s Day Tribute #father #agingwell #community

In celebration of our first born 40th this week, this book, for fathers, grandfathers and father figures is free. It’s an update story of one I wrote over twenty years ago am published as part of Never Too Late. It’s a short read and hopefully you will find it fun, encouraging and provocative. ...
He’s 81!!
Japan Solo

He’s 81!!

Many people think ikigai means discovering a grand purpose.n reality, it is often much simpler. A reason to get up. A place to go. People who know your name. Watching Juichi in his eighties, I wonder if that is part of what we are really seeing. I’m Lowell Sheppard, 71, sailor, author, and Fellow o...
The Car Was the Same Age as Me
Japan Solo

The Car Was the Same Age as Me

Today I rode in a beautifully restored 1957 MGA with my friend Tony a classic enthusiast @fastbikejp It wasn't lost on me that the car was almost exactly my age. I hope it's proof that with a little care, attention, and purpose, old machines—and perhaps old people too—can continue bringin...
Healthy Aging Requires Community
Japan Solo

Healthy Aging Requires Community

I do not like retirement homes. That may sound provocative, especially as aging societies rapidly build more of them. But after traveling across Japan’s longevity hotspots and researching healthy lifespan, I increasingly wonder whether separating generations may actually accelerate decline rather th...
Happiness and Healthy Aging in Japan
Japan Solo

Happiness and Healthy Aging in Japan

As I continue traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I keep hearing a surprisingly common response from people who remain active, healthy, and engaged deep into old age: “I don’t worry too much.” And I notice something else as well. They laugh easily. This Short is another small Field Note f...
Wahine vs Typhoon #6 Jangmi
Japan Solo

Wahine vs Typhoon #6 Jangmi

Wahine vs. Typhoon Jangmi: Post-storm inspection complete! This wasn't her first rodeo, and she held up great. The only casualty was the old, worn-out bimini. We already planned to upgrade to a hard bimini, so Jigmai just accelerated our timeline! Best of all, all five solar panels survived un...
The Art of Community and Aging Well #japan #agingwell #healthyaging
Japan Solo

The Art of Community and Aging Well #japan #agingwell #healthyaging

In Japan’s longevity hotspots, healthy aging is not reinforced only through healthcare or individual habits. It is woven into the annual rhythm of community life through rituals, festivals, preparation, participation, and shared responsibility across generations. Young and old working alongside one ...
The Hidden Cost of the  Nuclear Family
Japan Solo

The Hidden Cost of the Nuclear Family

More than a century ago, writer Lafcadio Hearn observed that Japan viewed life, family, and community differently from the modern West. Less linear. More circular. After years traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I increasingly wonder whether one hidden cost of the modern nuclear family is...
The Harbor is Empty Today #danger #travel #japan
Japan Solo

The Harbor is Empty Today #danger #travel #japan

The fishing harbor is empty today. A typhoon is approaching, and the village has prepared. The longer I spend in Japan’s remote longevity hotspots, the more I notice a deep awareness of nature, uncertainty, and the limits of control. One side of the storm can bring protection. The other, danger. ...
The Calm Before the Storm: My Boat is Ready #travel #boatlife #japan
Japan Solo

The Calm Before the Storm: My Boat is Ready #travel #boatlife #japan

Mirror-smooth water. Birds in the distance. Wahine waiting quietly in the bay. Tomorrow, the typhoon arrives. The boat is prepared. Now… we watch from shore. About me: I’m Lowell Sheppard, 71, sailor, author, and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. Through Japan Solo Field Notes, I explore ag...
Wake Early. Move Early. A Pattern in Japan’s Longevity Hotspots
Japan Solo

Wake Early. Move Early. A Pattern in Japan’s Longevity Hotspots

As I continue traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I keep noticing recurring patterns. One of them is simple: Many of the people who age well tend to wake early—and get moving early. Movement woven naturally into the rhythm of daily life. Of course, there are always exceptions. But agai...
A Stone in Remote Japan that Explains How To Age Well
Japan Solo

A Stone in Remote Japan that Explains How To Age Well

In a remote village near where my boat Wahine is moored in Amami, a weathered stone has long been part of a local coming-of-age ritual. At first glance, it seems ordinary. But the longer I study longevity and community in Japan, the more convinced I become that healthy societies are built when gen...
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