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TI: So I want to now kind of shift gears and go to your experiences at regular school. And I'm curious, when you first started school, like kindergarten, what was your primary language at that point?

TT: Oh, by then we were speaking English. We didn't speak Japanese at school.

TI: Yeah, but when, at home, before you even started school, were you speaking English when you were like four years old, or was it Japanese?

TT: No, I think we were speaking more English. Because our sisters were older.

TI: Okay, so your sisters were using English and you were conversing with them.

TT: Yah. As far as I could remember, we probably mixed a lot. See, that's why us Niseis mix our languages so much.

TI: But I'm wondering, do you find that your Japanese is generally better than most Niseis?

TT: Yah, because my mother was the Japanese school teacher.

TI: Right, because I'm just noticing as I'm interviewing you, you use more Japanese than most Niseis.

TT: Yah, and you have to be polite. You don't just use terms. And so when I went to Japan, they said that they were surprised at my Japanese because I'm speaking the Meiji era. And I said, well, my mother was a Nihongakko sensei, so I said I knew that. I wish I learned more. Hindsight.

TI: So if people, if one of your students were to describe you, Tak, in terms of what kind of student you were in regular school, how would your classmates describe you?

TT: Well, I don't remember anything about grade school or junior high, it's just in later years that I was more outspoken than most Japanese people, that I would say whatever I thought.

TI: So what would be an example of that? Do you remember how that would show up in terms of being more outspoken?

TT: Well, because I would speak up when other people just kind of hold back, and they won't want to say anything, but I would always raise my hand and tell them, "iran koto." [Laughs]

TI: So like during a classroom discussion, you would just go ahead and volunteer.

TT: Yah. And one thing, see, I didn't like history or English. English I could do conjugating and all that kind of stuff, but as far as reading, I did very little reading, so I would not answer on those. So my teachers used to tell me, "When you know the answer, raise your hand." So they felt sorry for me, I think.

TI: Why do you say they felt sorry for you?

TT: Well, because, you know, a lot of answers I wouldn't know, and they would know that I didn't know, and then -- this is later on in the years -- but one teacher used to say, "You didn't study that, did you?" and I said, "No." I said, "You could tell?" She says, "Yes, by your answers, that I know you didn't read your lessons or do that." [Laughs] I don't dare tell the kids that.

TI: When you went to... so in terms of your schooling, you mentioned earlier, the first school you went to was the Rainier school?

TT: Rainier school for kindergarten, and then after that we went to Washington school.

TI: Washington, and then you spent a year at Bailey Gatzert?

TT: That was when Washington became a junior high, so we had to go to Bailey for half a year.

TI: And then back to Washington?

TT: Yes, uh-huh.

TI: And then to Garfield.

TT: Yah.

TI: And when you were at Garfield, did you do any extracurricular activities? Whether it's student government or any other clubs or sports?

TT: No, I didn't even do too much in sports. I did badminton and things like that. I don't know if I was not capable of doing it, but I didn't do... I played baseball a little bit.

TI: And when you say baseball, more softball?

TT: Softball. Yah, I don't think women played hardball then.

TI: Yeah, when you said it, so that's why... and so when you started high school, so I'm trying to get my, now my dates here. So 1927, so you were about fifteen when the war started?

TT: Yah.

TI: And so what grade were you in at Garfield when the war started?

TT: I was a sophomore. I think we, from freshman we went into being a sophomore.

TI: Okay, so you started freshman year at Garfield and then became a sophomore.

TT: And then during our sophomore year is when we had to leave.

TI: Okay, all right.

<End Segment 7> - Copyright © 2015 Densho. All Rights Reserved.