日本老年啦啦队鼓舞民众士气

Japan may have little to celebrate with its economic recovery still fragile, so some cheerleaders are hitting the streets and stages to pep up the mood - including one pom-pom squad whose average age is 66.

On a recent Saturday, some 20 members of elderly cheerleading club Japan Pom Pom performed at a competition near Tokyo, waving gold pom-poms and dancing to the rhythm in shiny red costumes adored with sequins and wearing bobbed silver wigs.

"I started cheerleading when I was 63 and I think I can dance much better and have made some improvements. Anybody can improve, even if you are old," said Fumie Takino, the 78-year-old leader and founder of the club.

The club, whose members' ages average 66 and add up to 1,520 years, practices two hours a week and often performs at children's hospitals as well as nursing homes.

Takino said that their main goal is to have fun.

"There is a lot of depressing news and the economy is bad. I must say, I can only do a little to overcome this problem, but I hope we can provide energy and encourage people by showing how we senior cheerleaders are simply enjoying ourselves," she said.

The group's enthusiasm appears to be contagious.

In Tokyo's bustling business district of Shinjuku, Aya Saito, 33, has been dancing on a street every morning to the 1980s pop song "Mickey" for seven months as commuters rush by to work.

"Are you guys enjoying your job? Let's do our best today, too!" Saito called out on a recent week day, her long ponytail shaking as she hopped. Some took out their mobile phones to shoot photos while an old woman watched in amazement.

Saito said she started her daily dance routine last August after wondering how she could tell other employees to avoid making the same mistake that she did in her previous job, and which led her to quit - bottling up her frustration.

Her solution? She taught herself cheerleading by watching YouTube clips and hit the street in a $40 red, sleeveless cheerleading costume, purchased at a party goods store.

"One guy said he was going to quit his job but decided to stay after watching me dance here. That kind of thing makes me feel that my cheerleading is worthwhile," said Saito, now a freelance PR agent when she is not dancing.

经济复苏仍很疲软的日本可能没什么值得庆贺的，所以一群啦啦队队员走上街头，登上舞台，提振大家的情绪，其中一支啦啦队的平均年龄达到了66岁。

在最近的一个周六，“日本花球”老年啦啦队俱乐部的约20名成员在东京附近举行的一场比赛中亮相。啦啦队成员身穿饰有金属亮片的亮红色队服，头戴银色短假发，手中挥舞着金色花球，跟着节奏起舞。

俱乐部创始人、78岁的啦啦队队长武田郁惠说：“我63岁开始参加啦啦队，我觉得自己现在跳得好多了，还是有所进步的。每个人都能进步，老年人也不例外。”

这家具乐部成员的平均年龄为66岁，所有人的年龄加起来共有1520岁。她们每周训练两个小时，经常在儿童医院和疗养院表演。

武田说她们的主要目的是获得乐趣。

她说：“现在大家每天听到很多不好的消息，经济状况也很糟糕。我想说的是，我只能为这一问题的解决尽点微薄之力，但我希望我们能让大家感受到活力，通过展示我们老年啦啦队是如何给自己找乐趣的来鼓励大家。”

这个老年啦啦队的热情似乎很有感染力。

在东京繁忙的新宿商业区，每天早晨，当身边的上班族都在行色匆匆地赶路时，33岁的斋藤彩会在一条街上随着80年代的流行乐曲《米奇》跳舞，至今她已经坚持了七个月。

斋藤在最近的一天早晨跳舞时大声喊道：“你们喜欢自己的工作吗？今天我们也要做到最好！”她在跳舞时，长长的马尾辫左右摆动。一些人掏出手机拍下当时的情景，还有一名老年女性一脸惊讶地看着她。

斋藤称，她从去年八月份开始每天跳舞，之前她一直不知道如何告诉其他同事不要犯她在上一个工作中所犯的同样错误，这个导致她辞职的错误就是压抑自己的沮丧情绪。

那么她是如何解决这个问题的呢？她通过观看YouTube视频自学啦啦队舞蹈，从派对商店买了一件40美元的红色无袖啦啦队队服，然后穿上它上街跳舞。

斋藤说：“一个朋友说，他本来打算辞去工作，但在看了我跳舞后决定留下来。类似的事情让我觉得这样做很值。”在不跳舞的时候，斋藤是一名自由公关顾问。

Vocabulary:

pep up：to make or become spirited, vigorous, or lively; animate（使振作，激励）

pom-pom：an ornamental tuft or ball of feathers, wool, or the like, used on hats, slippers, etc（彩球，啦啦队员手持的花球。这里的pom-pom squad就是指“啦啦队”）

bottle up: to repress, control, or restrain（长时间掩饰，遏制，隐瞒不快等）