Why Japan Counts 72 Microseasons

The forest soon gives way to open countryside, where the only crowds are persimmon trees, arms outstretched and heavy with golden fruit. We wind through sleepy hamlets and past improvised fruit and vegetable stands in garages and aluminum-sided sheds. Some are little more than a stack of yellow plastic crates against a wall or wooden planks on cinder blocks, the goods left unattended, payment on an honor system,…