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MN: You lived away from your parents for eight long years, and your parents had three more sons while they were in the States. It sounds like you did not have a loving relationship with your parents.

HM: That's right. They came back after the great earthquake. Tsutomu, Takeshi and Toru, all three came back with them. Then we lived together.

MN: How did your mother start to show abusive behavior toward you?

HM: She tried to kill me. We had a holiday in Numata, a day off. That was a day off from work. I didn't work because it was a day off. Then, my mom told me to get some water. "Go get some water," because we did not have running water in the house. I had to go outside to get water in a bucket. My mom told me to get some water. I got some water but did not work. It was a holiday. And she got so mad and told me she would not feed me. We lived in a stable as we didn't have any other place to live. My dad came home, and she told my dad that I wasn't working at all. My dad said it was okay because it was a holiday. She told me to get some water, and I brought in some water in a bucket. Then she told a lie. She told him that she asked me to get some water, but I didn't. She told a lie to my dad. She told him that I didn't get any water. She lied to him.

This is another story. We had a bathroom in the backyard. There was a small pond. We had to go out and walk by the house and pass the pond to take a bath. One day, Takeshi was walking toward me. I was walking and we passed each other. There was this pond, and my mom told a lie. She said I pushed him, I pushed him into the pond. Takeshi ended up in the pond, that is what she was saying. But he didn't get wet, that's what she said. She told me she would not feed me, and she didn't. She said she was not feeding me. She did not give me any food for about ten days. I was so hungry. [inaudible] So I snuck in and ate while my mom was out. I couldn't eat. [inaudible] I stole food and ate while she was out. I would have starved to death otherwise. That's how it was.

Another time, she didn't feed me, and I went to school. I couldn't even stand up because I was so hungry. I couldn't stand up or study. I was just sitting. I talked to my teacher, and my teacher offered to buy me lunch. I said (s)he didn't have to, and (s)he got me some sweets. I barely survived. [inaudible] That was terrible. My mom tried to kill me. I snuck and ate. I would have starved to death otherwise. She really tried to kill me. That's very strange, isn't it?

MN: There was another incident when you were washing a pot in the pond, right?

HM: That's right. I was washing a pot and someone splashed water in my face. I looked up and saw my mom staring at me. I didn't do anything to upset her. I didn't do anything. She didn't scold me. She was just there looking furious. She looked just like ogre statues in Kyoto or Nara. Just like those scary looking man-made statues in Kyoto. She was staring at me with her angry face. I guess she just hated me so much. It was not like she scolded me because I did something wrong. She didn't scold me. She didn't say a word. She tried to kill me. She simply hated me. [inaudible] I survived somehow. That was very scary.

But she didn't do anything when my grandfather and grandmother were around. My grandfather used to get mad at my mom for some reason, and he was beating her up with a stick. That happened pretty often. She was running away. Tsutomu, Takeshi and Toru came back from the States. My grandfather and grandmother, my mother told my grandfather and grandmother that I was bullying them. I was not. After my grandfather and grandmother retired, she tried to kill me. She didn't do a thing when they were around. She was afraid because she would be beaten. My grandfather was harsh. My mom didn't scold me. She just hated me and tried to kill me. When my grandfather and grandmother were around, she didn't do anything because she was afraid. When my grandfather and grandmother were around, she did not even scold me. I didn't say anything about what I did wrong. She didn't do a thing when my grandfather and grandmother were around. She tried to kill me. She simply hated me.

MN: That was the family environment you grew up with.

HM: Yes.

<End Segment 3> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.