Dear Reader, In the United States, I’m often bombarded with images and ads of fitness culture. It’s the land of Alo Yoga and the birthplace of Crossfit, and it seems that the majority of people are members of gyms like Anytime Fitness or Equinox. Any decent hotel or typical college campus has free access to a gym, and it’s not uncommon to see someone share their workout on social media as they would their food. But in contrast to that, for a country that is a leader in life expectancy at 85...
8 days ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, Ahh rest. Something we all need, but seemingly can never get enough of. Maybe it's trouble sleeping, relaxing, or that even when you find yourself resting, you never actually feel rested afterwards. It impacts our work, our social life, our sense of well-being. The irony is we dedicate so much energy to finding rest because we know it's important. So why does it often feel so hard to find? To be a cat napping on a pillow The Japanese perspective on 'rest' When you imagine someone...
22 days ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, Lately, I've been feeling a bit distracted. There's a lot happening in the world, and some things in my personal life have also been taking up a lot of mental space. But then again, maybe that's just life. There's almost always something to worry about, something to plan for, or something to replay in our minds. If we're not careful, we can spend surprisingly little time in the present moment. But if you think about it, the present is where our lives are actually happening. To...
28 days ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, “If you could be an expert at anything, what would you choose?” It’s not an uncommon thought experiment. Especially in a world where speed, rather than patience, is often rewarded, it’s easy to dream about what it’d be like to skip to the outcome. But let’s consider the opposite: “If you could be a beginner at anything, what would you choose?” What we can learn from ‘shoshin’, or the beginner’s mind Typically, we don’t wish to be beginners. We wish that we already acquired XYZ...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Dear Reader, I just came back from a meal at a restaurant (which was very delicious). But instead of walking back home, which I normally do, I got in a car, sat, and drove. Not my first choice you see, but I’m spending the weekend at a house in an American suburb, and there was no option to walk back. Why I walk after eating Growing up in a city, if I went out to eat I would always walk home from the restaurant. Maybe take the train or bus in-between, but in general there is at least a good...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Dear Reader, I know, I know! It’s been a while since I sent out a newsletter - I have no excuses, except that I felt like I didn’t have any interesting thoughts so I logged off the Internet for a while. But I hope you've been well. I'm traveling, so all illustrations are a sketch and scan today :) Which may seem counterintuitive, because the Internet is full of interesting thoughts, so it makes sense to spend time there if you want to inspire yourself. But I’ve been finding that with the way...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, I watched my friend add an extra three tablespoons of olive oil to her broccoli with a mixture of amazement and skepticism. She then broiled it in the oven until the florets were basically charred through, and the stems soft and wilted. Then she added a dollop of butter and a dash of salt. The broccoli tasted good, but it didn’t quite taste… like broccoli anymore, I suppose. The best vegetable cooking tip I’ve ever received was also the simplest Watching my friend cook broccoli,...
5 months ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, Life has been a bit overwhelming for me recently. I feel like I never have enough time, energy, or bandwidth, and taking care of myself can sometimes feel like an additional chore rather than a way to enhance my wellbeing. But when I feel this way, I remind myself that healthy living doesn’t need to be stressful. The steps you have to take to look after your health are not as drastic as hour-long workouts or following a ketogenic, sugar-free raw diet. It can require a bit of...
5 months ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, What is the most beautiful Japanese word to exist? This was a question posed by the Japanese national broadcaster, NHK, in a public survey. And the answer astounded me. What may surprise you about Japanese beauty Learning about this survey, my mind immediately went to the more poetic aspects of Japanese. As a language, Japanese has a strong relationship with nature, and many words and adages are based on natural elements. For example, there is a word setsunai, which is based on...
6 months ago • 1 min read