A famous Japanese proverb says: "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down." Yet after years of travelling through Japan's remote communities and ...

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. ...

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 ...

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 ...

Rural Japan is often described as aging, shrinking, or falling behind. But spend time in a small village and you see something else. Less speed. More ritual. ...