Genki Oba-chan
Okinawan women not only have the longest life expectancy in the world, but the extra years are usually healthy, happy and productive. The reason is more nurture than nature, so eat your veggies, get some exercise, cherish your friendships, and remember to smile.
TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography 
That’s a really nice shot, Chris.
Yeah, Okinawa’s obaachans rock. Once I saw a group of them helping each other climb over a fence in order to take a short-cut to where they were going. It was fun to watch, but I remember thinking how “genki” they were compared to women of similar age back in the States. I also remember quite a few of them striking up conversations with me just because I happened to be sitting next to them. Ten years in Tokyo and I can count on my fingers the number of times a stranger actually tried to talk to me. I love Okinawa and the people there. You hit the nail on the head when you said, “Remember to smile.” That is a wonderful characteristic of Uchinanchu.