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TI: So I want to talk about your siblings, but before we get to your siblings, tell me a little bit about, first, your mother. How would you describe your mother? I know -- we'll get to this later -- I know your mother died when you were quite young, but your early childhood memories. What do you remember of your mother?

VW: Oh, she was, she was a very nurturing type individual, and maybe that's why I have a good feeling about the female establishment. They're far more nurturing than what men are, in general speaking. I'm not saying in every case, no. But in general, they, they possess some very good qualities of helping people. And so that's quite attractive to anybody, really, much better than men, in general.

TI: So what would be an example, when you say your mother was nurturing, can you recall something she did that you felt was nurturing?

VW: Well, she was always very sympathetic if we got hurt or anything like that, which is very important. Or if we weren't feeling well, she would know... seemed like she always knew what to do, and that's a pretty good feeling. I remember once we were in a buggy accident, just my mother and I were. And we were, the horse was running with the buggy and the lines were dragging on the ground and so on, and he ran for about a mile and a half, and he turned in the driveway, and the buggy didn't tip over, which was a little unusual. But when he went around the house and the barn it tipped over and my mother fell out right then. And she wasn't hurt, but I stayed in the buggy until it hit a big root system from a huge tree, and then the buggy separated from the horse and I had a gash on my head. And I didn't even know there was any blood running down, but when my mother saw it, that's when she came right to my aid right away. And this was the type of individual she was. And she was very meticulous. If my dad walked in with dirty feet, she be right after him with a broom sweeping up the mess on the floor. [Laughs]

TI: Okay, good. So that gives us a little sense of your mother.

<End Segment 4> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.