In recent years, my older colleagues and friends have begun to pass away one after another. I wonder if I'm reaching that age myself, and I feel like time is chasing me. I had a brush with death when I was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2005, and I was able to enjoy that situation with more objectivity and acceptance than I thought. In 2011, I had major surgery and lost my vocal cords. Since then, I've had surgery almost every year, and this life on the edge is my "landscape." (Nobuhiro Kawanaka)