I have been living and working in Japan almost continuously since 1990, and have been seeing the again of Japanese society first hand... in my own extended Japanese family, on the streets, and in the local newspapers.

This week, over New Year, I have been at the house of my late parents in-law. After some years of standing empty, the house is being downsized, renovated, and reoccupied by my single sister-in-law. In this family with three sisters, there are just two marriages, and two children. Re-occupying the house has been a happy process for everyone. Today I pruned a flowering peach tree, observed by a friendly and ageing couple across the street. I did not see any young children in our street over the last three days.

In the evening I went for a long walk through our suburb, on the outer edge of Tokyo. On one street corner I saw a very old man delivering a single greeting card to a red letter box.

A New Year Card

On this,

the second day

he sent a single card

Was this the story of his life,

the first day?

I hope his second day

will not be lonely

with no reply

Yesterday (Jan. 1),TheJapan Times(an English language daily) carried a front page headline on the aging population:

'Japan's population dilemma, in a single-occupancy nutshell' (by Reiji Yoshida, staff writer).

Yoshida reports that the nation's total fertility rate (TFR - number of children in an average woman's lifetime) is now at a record low of around 1.42, far below the 2.1 figure required for population replacement. The result has been a vast and rapid increase in single-occupancy of houses, empty houses throughout the country, especially in older buildings and isolated communities.

As a researcher working in the Japanese education system, I can attest that there is also a severe shortage of graduate research students to use and maintain the current research and teaching infrastructure of Japan.

While the Japanese government has been very reluctant to accept refugees from any country, including Syria in its current crisis, it does provide significant encouragement for foreign students to study in Japan.

Refugees who can legitimately identify themselves as capable students may have a good chance at gaining entry to Japan, and support for at least a year of study. Accommodation for students here can be very cheap... rental agencies have more properties available than potential tenants. I cannot give detailed advice, but there are many university websites in Japan with English-language pages and information for prospective international students.

I'll end this ramble with best wishes for the elderly everywhere - they are often refugees in their own country - and best wishes for all refugees of the world, young and old.