<Begin Segment 6>

TI: So let's talk about school. We talked a little bit, so what kind of student were you?

KY: Well, I think I was a good student. I've always had an intellectual curiosity which has helped me and so it also... I was eager to learn things, so that made me try, sign up for different things. And so I really felt that I enjoyed school very much.

TI: So when you're in school, you're doing well, you have these interests, before the war started, what were your... I guess hopes in terms of career or what you would be doing?

KY: I think that I thought I wanted to be a nurse. My desire was to go to college and so that my classes were geared towards going to college and I said, well, probably nursing career was the thing that came to my mind. But that got changed later, but a profession that I think.

TI: And besides your school classes, were there any other extracurricular activities that you did at school?

KY: You know, I don't remember. Well, I know I joined the chorus. I enjoyed taking trips, I remember one of my joys was going to the San Francisco opera. And I can't remember anything else, but I think there were things that interested me.

TI: And so after school when you're in high school, what would you do after school?

KY: Well, usually I wasn't very active in after school activities. Usually we... because I lived a little distance from high school, so usually just went to school and came back and didn't do too many high school activities. And since I didn't... I had friends but I didn't do very many things outside of school with these friends.

TI: Okay, so when you got home after school, what type of things did you do?

KY: I can't remember that I did anything.

TI: Were there things like certain chores that you would have to do?

KY: No, I don't remember that we had any chores to do.

TI: Okay, so when the war --

KY: Well, because I'm focused on the commune, but we moved and so we would, yeah, coming home afterwards we would play with the kids next door. There was a creek down near us and we would go down to the creek or go roller skating, those were some of the things we did.

TI: So describe, so after the commune you went to your own house, describe that house for me.

KY: Well, it was a very... we had a large yard, and my mother grew chickens, and we had a garden and it was a very small and neat house.

TI: And about what age were you when you moved to the house?

KY: That's what I was trying to think of. I think that I was beginning high school, I think.

TI: Okay, good. I forgot to ask you, so what was the name of your high school?

KY: Richmond Union High School.

TI: So you were at Richmond Union High School when the war started. You were... looks like you're about seventeen years old. So was that your junior or senior year?

KY: No, I was a senior. I was to graduate in June of '42.

<End Segment 6> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.