<Begin Segment 4>

SP: So when you were six years old, your mother gave birth to your brother George. And she had a pretty difficult birth experience.

KA: Yes, yes, uh-huh.

SP: Can you talk a little bit about what happened?

KA: Yes. She was very resentful that my father had become, was a Christian, and she did everything to discourage him because she thought it would bring a curse from the ancestors, you know, the Buddhists or something. And she fought him. I mean, this is what she told us all through, while we were growing up, how bad she was, you know. [Laughs] She would say, when Reverend Murphy would come from Seattle, maybe three or four times a year, she would say, "Oh, you need a haircut, you look terrible." So she would proceed to give him a haircut just about the time the service started. She said she would set the clock back. [Laughs]

SP: To make him late.

KA: Yeah. And she says, "How come, if you believe in a God so powerful, we're so poor?" And that was because the parents in Japan would always ask them to send money. Anyway, she said, "I would believe if I can see a miracle." And sure enough, she was hospitalized at Harborview hospital, after George was born, and there, God, the Holy Spirit revealed God to her. First of all, she heard the trumpets sound, and she told my father, "Does this hospital play the trumpet?" [Laughs] He said, "No, I don't hear it." And then he realized, oh, it must be God speaking and working in her life. And then she saw herself headed for Hell, and that scared her, that truly... and she saw herself for the first time as a sinner. She thought she was a pretty good person, never killed anybody, or never, you know, did anything bad. But the Lord showed her her heart, how she was rebellious towards God. And then she saw the Throne of God. She said it was, she couldn't see God's face, it was so brilliant, it almost blinded her. And then Jesus was on the right hand -- she never read the Bible, she didn't know anything about the Bible, but here she's telling this to my father. And he just trembled, knowing that it was supernatural. And anyway, Jesus told her, "You become a good woman. Repent," and she did. She asked for forgiveness, and he extended his hand to her, out to her, and he said, "I forgive you." Three times she heard him say that, and that just changed her life. And then he told her, "You go and wash," as a symbol of cleansing, I believe. And here she could hardly get up out of bed before, and she was able to get up and go to the sink, and she proceeded to wash her hair. And the nurse caught her. She thought, "Oh, this lady's lost her mind." [Laughs] So they gave her a mental test to see if she was incoherent or whatever, and I think she told me, told us that they brought a tray with a cup, saucer, fork, knife, plate. And she couldn't speak English, she could, you know, Japanese, osara, or... and so when they asked her the question, the Lord spoke through her in English and answered all the questions. It was truly, truly a miracle of God. And she was completely healed, and was discharged from the hospital on Easter Sunday. And here, we were boarded out, all of us kids. I think the baby was probably at the Ozama family, who was the, sort of the supervisor of the Japanese workers. And we were sent to Tacoma (to) stay with our relatives.

SP: So while your mother was recovering in the hospital...

KA: Uh-huh, while she was in the hospital, and my father would be with her here at Harborview. And they had to take the bus to... you know, we didn't have a car. But it's amazing how the Lord just watched over her. And so she was so happy to come back to her family with the kids, and she was a different woman.

SP: And did she share that story with you right away when --

KA: Oh, yes. She used to share that all the time. But she would close her eyes as she told us, and so all the children heard the story. That's why we have no doubt that God is a miracle-working God, even to this day. And same with the feeding program, it's just a miracle. And so anyway, the Lord has been so faithful, and we can... that's why my nephew is a minister, too, Joe Yoshihara. I believe it's because of the Holy Spirit guiding and blessing. All eight of us are still living.

SP: All of your siblings.

KA: Which is a blessing.

TI: And going back to the hospital, how serious was the illness?

KA: I really don't know. I think she must have had a high fever. I don't know what... because coming from Selleck to a hospital, that meant a real serious illness. Because the doctor, they probably called the doctor, and he probably felt that she needed to be hospitalized. And I don't know what the diagnosis was or anything, but she was very seriously ill because my father had thoughts of sending us to Japan if she died.

SP: How long was she in the hospital? Two weeks or a month?

KA: Let me see. George was born February, and Easter must have been in April.

SP: So about two months.

KA: So I don't know how long she was actually in the hospital. Maybe she was sick at home and got worse. But since she asked for a miracle, it's kind of... it's dangerous. [Laughs]

<End Segment 4> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.