Thinking about the balance problem while listening to Si l'on revient moins riches
I believe that balance is important for everything in life.
Things are not all good or all bad; they exist on a gradient, and I think black-and-white thinking is not a good way to handle things.
As for things where I consider balance, for example,
1. Work and play (= travel)
I think work is what makes play more enjoyable.
Just as a beer after work tastes good, play (= travel) after work is even more fun.
If I only played... I wonder what that would be like? I think I would get bored of playing.
By work, I mean anything—volunteering, light chores, housework—I want to be doing something that I feel is a little bit challenging.
I think finding that balance is both difficult and fun.
2. 'Listen to others' opinions?' vs. 'Stick to my guns and say this is who I am!'
As you get older, your mind physiologically becomes more rigid, you become stubborn, and it becomes harder to come up with new ideas.
To put it nicely, it might be called having a 'personal core,' but to put it bluntly, it's just aging, being thick-headed...
It's fine to be clear about who you are, what you like, and what you dislike, but I also think it's important to question that a little, to think, 'I used to think that way, but maybe I'm wrong?' and try new things.
While having your own opinion, you should also try to doubt your own thoughts and accept new things, but being too doubtful and always wavering isn't good either... I want to think about this balance as well.
3. Unvisited countries and revisited countries
I have a goal to visit 100 countries before I die.
There is no special meaning to 100; I just picked it randomly. Since there are about 195 countries in the world (the number changes depending on how you count), I thought it would be respectable to visit about half, so I set it at 100.
To achieve that, I need to visit about 3 or 4 new countries every year.
However, when you visit many different countries, you find many places you want to visit again. I want to know them more deeply.
The number of times I can travel abroad in a year is limited, and considering that the time I have left to travel abroad is a few more years to a maximum of 30 years, I have to think about the balance between aiming for 100 countries and revisiting countries I like, and I think being able to think about such things is the ultimate luxury.
These are examples of things where I feel I need to think about balance.
I think there are many, many more.
Finally, regarding the title 'Si l'on revient moins riches'...
I went to a chanson concert by Takarazuka alumni called the Le Temps Festival.
I finally made my chanson debut, as a listener, of course...
The average age of both the audience and the performers was quite high...
There are still so many unknown worlds out there.
I want to go listen again next year.
Now, what I heard during this concert,
'Si l'on revient moins riches'
Literally translated, it means 'If we return less rich'
If I were to summarize the lyrics very roughly with the help of ChatGPT,
The title Si l’on revient moins riches (If we return a little poorer) does not refer to money, but to 'heart,' 'time,' and 'love.'
The narrator of the song says: If we return a little poorer after finishing our journey—that is proof that we gave, loved, and felt a lot during this trip.
In other words, letting go of something, giving to someone, or shedding tears is what 'wealth' truly is.
It speaks of this paradoxical truth.
At the end of a journey, people leave behind not wealth, but traces in their hearts.
They return a little poorer, a little wounded, but with the proof that they truly 'lived.'
It is a very wonderful French lyric.
I thought about making this song my life's theme song.
My current theme song is,
The French lyrics of 'Si l'on revient moins riches' are titled 'Ai no Tabidachi' (Departure of Love) in Takarazuka, and it has become a super love song.
This version is also extremely wonderful.
I want to become a person who can hold that kind of love.