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BY: But I want to go back to talk a little bit more about your father and mother. So what was your father's name?

SN: Matsutaro.

BY: And where was he born?

SN: Aino, Hyogo Prefecture. My family's generations of farmer, so my father or grandfather all inherited the farm.

BY: And Aino is the name of the town?

SN: Town, yes, Aino.

BY: So your family lived there for many generations?

SN: Nakanishi family had the farm at Aino, yes.

BY: And what kind of farm was it?

SN: Mainly rice and wheat, so twice a year, rice and wheat. And also we had the forest, which produced mushrooms, matsutake mushroom.

BY: Right. So did your family just get the matsutake for themselves, or did they sell them?

SN: No, they sold.

BY: That's really interesting. At that time, was it common to find matsutake in the forest?

SN: Yes, way back. But recently, matsutake is scarce. But my family still pick up matsutake and sold, even ship to U.S.

TI: So I'm curious, how does the matsutake that your family pick in Japan, how does that compare with the matsutake in Seattle?

SN: Well, most of matsutake in Seattle comes from Canada, and some from Korea. And taste not much different, but the fragrant Japanese one is superior.

TI: Have you tried the ones, though, that were picked locally? Like from Mt. Rainier or the Cascades? Have you tried that yet?

SN: Yes. I ate the, like from Canada.

TI: Okay, so next year, I'm going to bring some.

BY: I mean, I think they have some, though, here at Lakeshore. A little bit, a little taste. Yeah, because we had a session on matsutake, so that's interesting. All right. So going back to your father, what was he like? What kind of a person was he?

SN: Well, how to say... but he's a very hard worker, and also very broad-minded. Because I went to college in Kyoto. Every time I go home I asked him for some money. [Laughs] He gave me money without any complaints or any question, so I could survive. So very generous, nice father.

BY: That's great. How about your mother? What was your mother's name and where was she from?

SN: Ju, J-U, Ju.

BY: Ju. What was her maiden name before she was married?

SN: Matsuda.

BY: Matsuda.

SN: Matsuda Ju.

BY: And where was she from?

SN: Same, farmer.

BY: From the same village?

SN: Matsuda family had their own farm, yes.

BY: Okay. And so how did your parents meet?

SN: I think arrangement, marriage, which is usually done in Japan. So some nakodo, go-between, introduce each other.

BY: So did the families know each other before your parents got married?

SN: I guess so.

BY: All right. [Laughs]

SN: I'm not so sure. [Laughs]

BY: Okay. And were your mother and father same age or was there a difference in their ages?

SN: I think about the same age. Five or seven years' difference, that's common.

BY: And what was your mother like?

SN: Oh, she's very, very nice. Hard worker, worked the farm, and we had a total of (seven) children, she raised all of us.

<End Segment 2> - Copyright © 2022 Densho. All Rights Reserved.