<Begin Segment 18>

TI: But that's interesting. So on the day of (December) 7th, the business was down, and the days after, like the weeks after, did business stay kind of low? Lower than...

RN: Yeah.

TI: Did any of your customers ever talk to you about the war and the United States was in this war?

RN: Uh-uh. No, they weren't prejudiced, you know. Like I remember we used to have an ashtray, nice ashtray, Japan, and one hakujin customer wanted that. They didn't even ask for it. He put it on top of his head and wore a cap. He forgot, so that thing broke when he lifted his hat to say goodnight. And the ashtray just broke in small pieces. My mother got another one, gave him a new one.

TI: Oh, so he wanted to keep it, so he just put it on his hat. And when he put it up there, it fell.

RN: Yeah.

TI: But he didn't ask for it, he just was going to take it. But your mother was going to give him one anyway?

RN: Oh, yeah.

TI: So why do you think your mother did that?

RN: I don't know.

TI: That's a good story. That's interesting.

RN: My mother felt sorry for him.

TI: Yeah, or really kind.

RN: He wanted that ashtray so bad.

TI: Well, was your mother really thinking about, almost, the wants of another person in giving... even though he never asked directly, he did that.

RN: I know.

TI: Interesting. So how did... with the business dropping, was that difficult financially for the family when not as many customers would come into the restaurant?

RN: No, not too much. The ones that used to come, still come, you know.

TI: Now did you and your husband talk about what's going to happen? As you think about the war that started, there's lots of, sort of, tension, did you and your husband kind of think what was going to happen next?

RN: No, uh-uh.

TI: How about talking with your parents? Did anyone have any thoughts about what might happen in Fresno to the Japanese?

RN: Yeah.

KN: Did Grandma Fujimura tell you maybe what's gonna happen to...

RN: No, she didn't.

<End Segment 18> - Copyright © 2010 Densho and Preserving California's Japantowns. All Rights Reserved.