Photo/Illutration Chief Cabinet Secretary Keizo Obuchi shows the name of the new era, Heisei, at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on Jan. 7, 1989. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

In January 1989, then Chief Cabinet Secretary Keizo Obuchi held up, with great deliberation, a panel bearing kanji characters in traditional Japanese ink-and-brush calligraphy.

“The new ‘gengo’ (era name) is Heisei,” Obuchi announced.

I once went to see Junichi Kato, an official at what was then the Prime Minister’s Office, who did the calligraphy.

A professional calligrapher, Kato recalled staying up all night in his younger years, practicing the same kanji over and over from the copybook. By dawn, he would have a thigh-high pile of used paper.

His instructor tended to say that technical proficiency precedes the development of the calligrapher’s own style.

Kato said he wanted letters on government office signboards to be well-formed. Is his wish being met?

When the Cabinet Bureau of Personnel Affairs was established in 2014, the unique brushstrokes on the signboard raised some eyebrows. The lettering on the signboards of the Japan Sports Agency and the Osaka Expo promotion bureau could also hardly be considered classically beautiful.

Still, these calligraphers have my sincere sympathy.

We may have become experts at texting on smartphones, but opportunities for writing by hand are inexorably diminishing. Is this the result of the hard work by people who know their handwriting is horrible? I can relate to them.

Whenever I write my name on a wedding or funeral guestbook, it comes out like a child’s scrawl.

And when taking notes during an interview with a fast talker, my panicked hand mangles hiragana letters so badly that “ta,” “na” and “ru” morph into a jumble. As a result, “taeru” (endure) looks like “naeta” (wilted).

New Year’s greeting postcards, or “nenga hagaki,” went on sale nationwide on Nov. 1.

I am sure many people print out the addresses, but they may also wish to add short, handwritten messages. Recipients certainly appreciate such effort.

However, only two months remain until the year’s end.

Books with titles like “Mastering Beautiful Handwriting in 30 Days” beckon alluringly from bookstore shelves.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Nov. 2

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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