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TI: So what about just early childhood memories in terms of, like, playing in the neighborhood? What was that like?

SO: Well, we didn't have too much, but we used to go to the neighbors and play all kind of games. Whatever we can use, like one family was Nakamoto family, got a lot of burlap bag for drying out things, so we used to use those for, to make tents and play, just like we're at the circus. And that's how we used to pass time. There wasn't much to do. Then we didn't have a playground, so we just used to go across the street, throw balls, and when the neighbor was cleaning the garden, we used to go help him clean the yard out, clean the garden, so they can plant the new vegetables. So wasn't too much to do.

TI: How about things like sports? Did you guys do sports?

SO: Sports, not too much, because we didn't have a big playground. It's just running around and playing with balls, that's all.

TI: Okay. So talk about school. What was school like growing up?

SO: Well, those days we had to walk two miles to Konawaena school every morning, and two miles coming home. And our parents couldn't afford shoes, so we used to walk barefooted going to school. And then those days, lot of the teachers were just, they used to call it "normal school teachers," they didn't go to university. But they were good teachers. And then that's how we learned all the Hawaiian songs in the olden days. But today, you don't experience those songs anymore. So it was fun going to school. Only playground equipment they had was a swing and then... not too much those days.

TI: So when you mentioned you walked barefoot to school, when you got to school, then you put shoes on?

SO: No.

TI: You're just barefoot all day.

SO: All day. Barefoot all day, and sometimes we would kick the rocks, and then the toenail, the skin would peel, and those days we didn't have any good medication. So, and still we didn't have infection, because those days didn't have too many bacteria going around. So it was so simple.

TI: So was it, was it common that all the children had no shoes, or did some have shoes and some didn't?

SO: Very few had shoes. Majority were all barefooted, because that's all, that's all they can afford, parents. They couldn't afford to buy shoes or anything.

<End Segment 7> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.