72. Japanese Seasonal Living with Alexis Agliano Sanborn
When my family and I traveled to Japan earlier this year, we noticed how much care and attention was placed on the smallest gestures. The way tea was lovingly poured. The way a package was wrapped up in a shop, like a little gift. And the way groundskeepers quietly brushed away leaves from the mossy floor at ancient temples.
We were there just before the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, so we didn’t experience them in their full splendor, but managed to find a few trees that were bursting with pink and white blossoms. We did sit on benches and write haiku. We did pause and marvel at how far away from home we were. Without knowing it, we were participating in kisetsukan, the Japanese sense of being present with each season as it happens.
Today’s guest is Alexis Agliano Sanborn, author of the new book Moments in Bloom: A Modern Guide to Japanese Seasonal Living. Inside, she writes that “Japan is intensely attuned to seasonality, from cherry blossom viewing in the spring to warm sake specially served in the winter. Seasonality isn’t just a feature of Japanese culture; it’s an inextricable keystone of life in this country.”
When I flipped to the dates of our trip, I found it to be associated with the awakening of insects. This is just one of 24 seasons (and even more micro-seasons) that are celebrated in Japan throughout the year. And that’s exactly what we’ll be talking about on the podcast today: how to bring Japanese seasonal living into your daily life.
None of this is a prescription or more to do. Rather it’s an open invitation to notice what’s here right now, and invite in more wonder, more hope, and more connection.
Highlights
How an early fascination with manga and anime grew into deep study and teaching abroad in Japan
Ways the Japanese practice of kisetsukan (presence with each season) offers an architecture for deepening your own awareness
Seasonality as a counterforce to our urgent, always-on culture
Moving from a technical understanding of the 24 Japanese seasons to noticing what’s abundant right now in your own place and time
The joy in hunting for and discovering what defines each season where you live
Seasons aren’t just about nature—they’re the rhythms and rituals woven through your own everyday life
How noticing the impermanence of all things builds resilience and supports your wellbeing
Finding unexpected support and grounding in seasonal awareness, especially during life’s most challenging moments
The evolution of hosting a podcast to writing a book with a co-author
Links & Mentions
Foundational Japanese literature: The Tale of Genji by Lady Murasaki Shikibu, and Manyôshû and Kokinshû poetry collections
Meet Alexis
Alexis Agliano Sanborn is an independent researcher, nature enthusiast, and award-winning artist. She is an inventive storyteller who enjoys working across media. Among other creative projects, she directed the award-winning documentary short Nourishing Japan (2020), which explores the impact of food education and the school lunch system on Japanese communities. Alexis co-hosted and produced Season by Season, a monthly podcast that celebrates our connection to nature through sound and story.
She received her bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies from UC Santa Barbara, a master’s in regional studies of East Asia from Harvard University, and a master’s in public administration from New York University Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. In her free time, she enjoys gardening and painting. Alexis lives with her husband and their two cats in the Northeast.
Connect
✨ Seasonal shifts offer a gentle invitation to pause, pay attention, and make space for what comes next. THRESHOLDS is the guided reflection ritual I've returned to for years, now gathered into a workbook I'd love to share with you. Download your copy here.
