<Begin Segment 5>

MA: So let's go back, so you said there were eight children in your family.

SE: Uh-huh.

MA: Can you name all the children in the order they were born? So starting with the oldest...

SE: Yeah, the oldest was Hiroji, let's see, he was, he was born in September. And he was born in... he was born in '09 or was it '10? Somewhere like that. I think 1910 and then Haru was born 1911, Etsu was born in 1913, and then Hiromichi was born in 1915, I guess, and then 1917 was Hiroyuki. And then myself, and then Hiromi in 19'... is it '21? '22?

MA: Which one was this?

SE: Hiromi, and then the youngest was born in 1926.

MA: And that was Hironori?

SE: Hironori, uh-huh.

MA: So your brothers, then, are Hiroji, Hiromichi, Hiroyuki, Hiromi and Hironori.

SE: Uh-huh.

MA: And then there's yourself, and your sisters are Haru and Etsu?

SE: Etsu, uh-huh.

MA: Wow, big family.

SE: Big family, uh-huh. So one thing, though, it was unusual for Japanese, that Dad always remembered our birthdays. And he used to sometimes have Kinka Low deliver a Chinese dinner for our birthdays. And one thing I remember was he always had a case of pop. We always got to choose the pop we wanted. [Laughs]

MA: So you celebrated all the birthdays?

SE: The birthdays, uh-huh.

MA: What other sorts of holidays or celebrations did you enjoy with your family?

SE: Of course, in those days, New Year's was the big thing. Yeah, they did a big spread. And then like with all the birthdays, and so, yes, we celebrated Easter and then Fourth of July, Mother always took us to the parade. And then we loved going to the parade, especially on the way home, we'd stop and pick up ice cream cone. [Laughs]

MA: Was that parade downtown?

SE: Uh-huh. But Mother loved parades, and she'd always take us down.

MA: So you said you were, you celebrated Easter, so your family was Christian?

SE: Christian, uh-huh, and we had a big to-do at church.

MA: Which church did you attend in Seattle?

SE: In Seattle? The Japanese Congregational Church, which was, at that time, when we were youngsters, it was just one block below Buddhist Church. It was there at the, sort of an apartment house, uh-huh.

MA: So right close to your home?

SE: Uh-huh, it was close to home.

<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.