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AI: Well, I'm really interested in, now you were the oldest child, and daughter. And it sounds like your mother had so much foresight in many ways. And was -- both your parents taught you lessons about life, and what was important to them, and how to live your life well. I was wondering if they gave you any advice about marriage and anything about...

KM: Uh, no... yes, yes she did. When I, after I graduated high school, my girlfriend wanted me to meet her cousin. And he was kind of a higher, upper class according to my mother's (thinking). And then so she always says, "Don't marry anybody that has lot of siblings, because when you kosai" -- you know you correspond and everything -- "It's gonna be a tremendous, tremendous burden if you're poor." So she says, "Marry somebody that has just few." And then, also she, lot of times she would say, "According to different family, when they're rich, your clothes have to be just so and your language would have to be just so. And so you try to get interested in somebody that would be same level." That's what she used to always say. And so my girlfriend went on to be a Japanese dancer, and she almost became a natori, which is a, getting a name. And then, but I used to love dancing. And so every time she performs, I would go. And so she tried to discourage me from going. She says, "You're never gonna get that way. So, we can't afford it. So don't go." But, anyway, so my girlfriend would teach me different things. And then I learned by picking it all up. So, you know, when I was in camp I taught lot of people from our block how to dance because I just loved to dance. [Laughs]

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 1999 Densho. All Rights Reserved.