In the West, turning sixty is something people try to hide. You buy anti-aging cream. You joke about retirement homes. In Japan, when you turn sixty, your family dresses you in bright scarlet red and throws a massive party. It's called Kanreki. The traditional Japanese zodiac operates on a 60-year cycle. When you reach sixty, you have lived through all five elements and all twelve animal signs. The cycle completes. You return to the beginning. The red vest — the chanchanko — is the exact color worn by newborn babies. You are not being called old. You are being celebrated for being reborn: with the pure heart of an infant, and the accumulated wisdom of a lifetime. Children hug their grandparents. Sons pour sake for their fathers with both hands. In Japan, age is not an apology. Gray hair is not a flaw. It is a medal you earn by walking this earth for sixty years, surrounded by the people who exist because you did.