The rainy season has ended and summer is in full swing across Japan. Families are enjoying nature, visiting hometowns, and having fun at theme parks. Young people head for the sea and mountains. And those spending summer abroad are said to be far more numerous than in the year right after the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Yet there are elderly people who cannot travel overseas or return home. A summer festival was recently held at a nursing home in Tokyo for just such residents.
Bon dancing, fireworks, and stalls serving yakisoba, cotton candy, shaved ice, draft beer, and more — just like neighborhood Bon festivals in city parks. But here the organizers are not local community leaders; they are the caregivers who look after the elderly day to day and members of family associations. Caregivers swap their uniforms for happi coats and bustle about, doing their best to help wheelchair users enjoy the festivities.
When Tokyo Ondo and Tanko Bushi play, elderly residents who can walk join the Bon dance circle. Those in wheelchairs move their hands in time with the music. Surrounded by visiting family, they regain their smiles and savor the festival atmosphere.
On the second floor of Palaceside Building, the Dementia Prevention Foundation offers consultations for families with concerns.