Nourishment

by Nao

yashina-u, yō

Nourishment is the meaning of this character. The verb yashina-u means to bring up, take care, or to nurture. The suffix u is okurigana.

Bringing up children is yōiku. Iku is to bring up or to raise.

Taking care of the elderly is yōrō. Rō means old age.

Someday, I would like to visit Yōrō tenmei hanten chi (The Site of Reversible Destiny – Yoro Park, Gifu). It would be a dizzying experience but looks like lots of fun.

This park is in Yōrō Town. The name of the town dates back to the eighth century, when an empress visited the place and heard that the spring water had the power to rejuvenate.

Yojō is something you had better do for good health. Although it sounds classical, the greeting “yōjō shite(ne)” or “yōjō senaakanyo” means “take good care of yourself”.

The upper part represents a sheep. The lower part is a dish.

1. Draw the dot top left.
2. Draw the sweeping dot top right.
3. Draw the horizontal stroke touching the first two dots.
4. Draw the vertical stroke.
5. Draw the horizontal stroke crossing the vertical stroke.
6. Draw the longest horizontal stroke.
7. Draw the sweeping stroke to the lower left. Make it narrower at the end.
8. Draw the sweeping stroke to the lower right. Make the hem-like ending by spreading the brush.
9. Draw the small dot between the previous strokes.
10. Draw the right-angled hook.
11. Draw the horizontal stroke inside the rectangle.
12. Draw the horizontal stroke at the bottom of the rectangle.
13. Draw the vertical line from where you start the tenth right-angled hook.
14. Draw the stroke heading toward the dot below the rectangle. Make it narrower gradually.
15. Draw the dot sweeping toward the previous stroke.
16. Draw the sweeping stroke that goes between the last two strokes. This stroke looks similar to the eighth stroke.

In the dictionary, this is categorized as a 15-stroke character. The thirteenth and fourteenth strokes are supposed to be one.