What will be the fate of our children amid the pandemic?

The Japan government hands out financial incentives and aid to couples who intend to start a family. — SINA CN

In mid-April every year, I would buy a couple of brightly coloured carp streamers or koinobori and thread a string through them to hang in my courtyard, in anticipation of the Japanese Children’s Day celebration which falls on May 5.

Foreign students who have lived in Japan for a few years will know that some time in April and May each year towards the end of the sakura matsuri, colourful carp streamers could be seen fluttering in the wind all across the country, portraying a beautiful and heart-warming landscape against a backdrop of azure blue sky and pristine white clouds.