gotohealth's Blog

FLEXIBILITY WITH A STRONG FOUNDATION

Nov

9

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In graduate school, my thesis was about the difference between men and women. The key was that Women have a larger Corpus Collosum that is the bridge between the right and left brain activity. Therefore, men can be more focussed. Perhaps that is why they are the better bread winners. Women on the other hand use both sides of their brain more and may be more flexible. Thus, women may be better at multi-tasking and running a household with different and changing levels of communication.

At age 80, its still important to keep learning so I can handle the different scenarios in my life like Inu the dog.

EATING LIKE ROYALTY

Nov

2

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It's November and the season is just about over for the Matsutake hunting season here in the Pacific Northwest. The most delicious way to fix Matsutake is to slice them and saute them in butter with a little salt and pepper. My mouth is watering as I think of how a few bites taste as a royal appetizer!

MICHI NORTH MASTER PIANIST IN CONCERT

Oct

21

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Let me share the story of some of why Michi Hirata North, pianist, is performing this “Beiju” (88th birthday celebration) event and honoring Hidemaro Konoye with her Town Hall concert on this 2019 November 10th. There are three main reasons.

The first is that Mr. Tanaka, temporarily in New York, saw Sam Goto’s cartoons of Michi for her last concert at Meany in the North Am Post four-years-ago. Tanaka-san emailed me and said he had been looking for Michi and would I send her contact information to him. Subsequently, he returned to Japan and shared the CD with his friend Mr. Tawara - whose work was diplomatic relationships with Russia, but his hobby is of collecting a vast amount of memorabilia of historical musical professionals in Japan.

Mr Tahara wrote Michi saying, “I saw you perform as a teenager in the late 1940s. I’ve been looking for you for 65 years.” Michi is one of the only ones still living from the WWII era of well known musicians. Mr. Tawara has close relationship with Kingstudio.asia. They immediately produced CDs for distribution from Michi’s concert. The studio executives are excited about getting an even better recording for posterity. Tanaka-san called Michi in September to say he is coming for the concert, from Japan.

The second reason for this concert is Michi reconnecting with the granddaughter of Hidemaro Konoye and the Konoye Foundation of Music. Hidemaro was the younger brother of Fumimaro Konoe (don’t know the reason for different spelling of last name). Michi was in their home on December 17, 1945, when Fujimaro committed honorable suicide as the pre-war Prime Minister of Japan who got Japan into the war with the United States.

Hidemaro was Michi’s father’s best friend. They studied in Germany together in the 1920s. Konoye is known for founding the New Symphony Orchestra of Tokyo (the present day NHK Symphony Orchestra). At the end of WWII in Germany, Konoye as one of the guest conductors of the Berlin Symphony Orchestra was isolated by the US government as the US/Japan war was still raging. He was repatriated through New York and chose to return to Michi’s home.

Michi was 13-years-old when Konoye was staying in their home in Tokyo and now she says: “Up to his visit to our home in 1945, I was obediently practicing, but Konoye inspired me to become more excited about music and performing. I traveled all over Japan with him and his orchestra from ages 14 to 18.” Michi is honoring Konoye with his orchestral composition for Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1.

The third and most remarkable part of the event is that Michi is turning 88-years-old this December 2019. Imagine, playing two 40-minute concertos, all on one November 10th Sunday afternoon and we get to be there??

HISTORY KEEPER'S WORKSHOP

Oct

15

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Pleased to follow-up the delightful and well organized History Keeper’s Workshop last Saturday in Kent, WA. As I think about my weekly blog, I am thinking of “incident - point - benefit”.

Watching an NHK TV program this morning about Seattle's international make-up and beauty, it is inspiring me. They are showing the workers throw fish at Pike Market. They are showing the trees in downtown Pioneer Square area as well as the glass blowing shop down there. They interviewed this family from Iran dancing in Westlake Mall. The Recreational Tree Climbing company is showing how kids can enjoy Volunteer Park. It’s a series of short stories and helps me get excited about living here.

It occurs to me the same thing happens when I do research and write stories about my family. I found my father’s aunt was an opera singer in famous Hibiya Hall in Tokyo. I found out my Grandpa was one of the 100 Dairy farmers in Orillia, right there by Ikea, that once supplied half of Seattle’s milk supply around 1915 - 1920. My mother was born around the south end of South Center Mall. Most of us will be buried in the Kent Hillcrest Cemetary. It helps our grandchildren be more excited about being part of the family.

LIVING A LIFE OF BEAUTY

Oct

8

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My ancestors came from Japan for economic and individual freedom. The NHK-WORLD TV documentary, I’m watching, is about this family in Japan. The family is passing on the art of designing and weaving Obi (Japanese kimono sash) to the next generation.

The programming of NHK regularly features artists who keep original and historical ways. For instance with cooking, it includes growing and acquiring ingredients, bringing out best of flavors, making it exciting to the eyes and adding a modern twist.

I find myself appreciating my Japanese heritage values of attention to nature, integrity and responsibility. This beauty, comes from centuries of a homogeneous existence and attention to culture during 1600AD to 1800AD without wars.

There is beauty in BUILDING AND CREATING and DIVERSITY. A definition of diversity that I like is: “the ability to challenge each other’s beliefs while keeping our dignity and respect for each other”.

Living a life of beauty, incorporating diverse beliefs, is a challenge that I love! Beauty can be incorporated into each step of the process of living our daily lives. I have no desire to live in Japan. How can I pass these splendid elements of heritage on to future generations here in Seattle?

The most important way is to use the POWER OF STORY TELLING!!

CREATING GENERATION WEALTH FOR MY NEW LIFE

Oct

1

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This morning I had a toasted piece of Dave’s Killer Bread with lots of butter. I love bread, but we rarely had any in our house these past 40 years to avoid Diabetes. The packaging and the fact that it was thin-sliced caught my eye at New Season’s Market a couple months ago. The label verified the fact that it was full of healthy ingredients and I loved the taste when I had a piece.

Everyone around me seemed to know the story behind the bread but me. I decided to google the story on YouTube. Wow, was I inspired!

The words I wrote on my notebook are, “GENERATIONAL WEALTH CREATION; wealth of spirit, health, assets and hope!” It fit all the areas that I’m passionate about.

There are three areas on which I plan to focus, now that I need to restart a new life. First, I don’t have to move out of the house in which I’ve hated being in alone for the last 21 months. I love having friends and relatives over for lunch/dinners.

Second, we are writing, publishing and distributing a book of SAMURAI SHIGERU The art & wisdom of Sam Goto. The proceeds will go to the Japanese Cultural and Community Center for it’s contributions to the city of Seattle. The passing on heritage values of INTEGRITY and cultural disciplines relate to all ethnic communities but it was Sam and my obsession.

The Japanese had a period of peace, from 1600 to 1800AD, which gave the people of Japan a place with cultural arts where they could put their energy instead of for wars. Therefore, the Japanese cultural values were developed to almost become a science of responsibility. Those of us with Japanese heritage here in the US are an example of overcoming the hardships of incarceration during WWII and of now being the highest per capita income group with the US census here in Washington State.

My third area is the Counseling and Nutrition business I’ve had for the last 43 years featuring the Shaklee products for good health. Shaklee helped fulfill Sam’s dream to be healthy and he was still climbing stairs until shortly before his death at age 85.

Dave Dahl’s story inspires me to continue to build and create the legacy and stories that I weave and write for those who choose to benefit, but I particularly have my great grandchildren in mind.

TAKING RESPONSIBILITY

Sep

25

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Yesterday I had a discussion, which was the typical “News Media Type” circle of he said, she said, they said merry-go-round. Only this time it was from the other side. "I’ve taken responsibility so...so should you!"

Isn't there a place to disagree, but clearly respect each other?

Today, I spent part of the morning with the usual direction of negativity and not taking responsibility - the only way the news media can keep up their ratings is to highlight the blame game, right?

Both incidents keep going on a bunch of assumptions and emotions.

Yesterday and today, after both incidents, I found someone to talk with about the issues. As a counselor, I know that one of the best ways to handle stress is to have as large as possible social network to get help with physical needs and getting advice, but talking with someone is the strongest.

On the other hand, there are people like Hans Rosling, Physician & College Professor, from Stockholm, Sweden, who developed a company Gapminder Foundation, continued today by his son Ola and wife Anna. He started with lectures JOY OF STATS, deciding a lot of our stress comes from all the negativity and information we hear, believe and have wrong.

For instance, there is a UNICEF statistic for 2016 that 4,489,000 children, under the age of one, died in the world - awful. The truth is that in 2015 it was 4,601,000. In 1950 it was 14 million. We have actually done a lot to improve our world, but that is not the headlines. Rosling makes fun of all us audiences. He has polled to find on multiple choices we all score worse than chimpanzees.

My suggestion is that one go to youtube.com and watch Ola Rosling and FAKE NEWS AND FACT RESISTANCE.

Get the facts!!!! Quit spreading my negative emotional assumptions. Find the positive. GROW!

WASTING MY ENERGY!!

Sep

20

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About an hour ago, I turned on my desk top TV and there was an interruption of my service. It suggested I call Comcast and report Status Code 225. When I called Comcast it referred me to an audio recording, suggesting I need to wait for a text from an agent.

It turned out the agent is also a robotic agent and asked me to voice a few answers. Somehow I didn’t say the right answer and it asked me to answer on a scale of 1 to 10 to rate them and I couldn't get back to an agent. No matter what I tried, it was not getting anywhere so I hung up and tried again.

The next time I was getting irritated and gave a rating of 0. So one more time I went through the robotic system but this time I knew what to say so I could get a live person. This all probably took about 20 minutes.

The realization is that there are a lot of human interactions that are equally robotic because I haven’t asked the right questions or given the right answers. It’s so idiotic on my part to get so angry and waste energy. But after I calmed down, I did look at my text message from the Comcast Robot and deleteD them so it wouldn't keep reminding me of feeling so negative. Instead, I'm blogging so the incident can be kept in posterity :-)

TELLING STORIES

Sep

13

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The main reason I was at Portland, Oregon's, Good Samaritan Hospital in the Nurses Training Program in 1959 was because I had randomly picked that field because it was a way I could afford to get a college degree. I loved my year at Lewis and Clark College, but I hated the hospital training. I mentally rebelled against the military style requirements, like room inspection. I hated the rote memorization of nursing procedures on the perfect way to make hospital beds, follow doctor orders and pass out meds. My grandpa offered to let me change to teaching, but I was not a quitter of something I started.

One day, I bought and read Dale Carnegie’s book HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE. I got excited and decided I could “change my world”. Despite the fact that I was poor and only had $20 a month of money to spend, I bought 3 copies and anonymously sent them to the Administrator of Good Samaritan Hospital, forget his name; the Nursing Administrator, Miss Hine, and the administrator of the Nurses Training School, Miss Grimes.

Twenty years later, November 1976, I started an in-home nutrition and family counseling business and decided to take a 6-week Dale Carnegie course offered in down town Seattle. Two of my classmates were the son of Larry’s Market owner and the now famous J A Jance, whose books are constantly featured at grocery store checkout counters. I learned to tell stories and teach others to share their stories benefiting our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.

The average reader or listener has a 2-minute attention span. To engage someone, there needs to be an INCIDENT - POINT - BENEFIT. We practiced telling stories. When I give a presentation or write a book, I need to re-engage my listener or reader with another incident each 500 words.

The best incidents are in first person, start with “one day” and have an intention or point that will benefit the individual or audience.

Then in 1991, I started an OMOIDE (memories in Japanese) writing group with these same guidelines. We have used Dale Carnegie's principles to share stories about our Japanese American heritage and will hopefully publish book number VI.

This week is September 2019. It's been 60 years since I first learned about Dale Carnegie and I'm 80 years old. A colleague and I sat and watched Oprah impress us with her stories with "INTENTION" to help us live purposeful lives. I intend to keep practicing!!

IN THE ZONE

Sep

5

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“Being In The Zone”, was a constant part of our conversation as Sam and I watched SeaHawk games, worked on our Shaklee Business Newsletters or wrote our books.

Being in the zone, refers to a state of physical/mental activity that is deeply motivating. It’s a balance of challenge and skill, completely absorbing, with clear goals or deadlines. Further, a merging of action and awareness, total concentration, loss of self-consciousness, a sense of control, no extra rewards needed, transformation of time, and effortless movement.

We often recognized, the zone, at 2am or 3am. We found ourselves smiling because it was so fulfilling.

Then we ran to our kitchen pantry, made ourselves a Shaklee shake so our bodies could have the ingredients to repair and replace our worn out cells as we snuggled and went to sleep.