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MN: Well, I just want to ask one more question and then we'll continue next time. But since you mentioned your brother Katsuro, he went through the system: grammar school, high school, had his eyes set on going to the Mainland. You have your two older brothers above you, you have Fumiye above you. To what extent did your siblings' academic progression affect you?
KM: I think there was a certain amount of pressure on my part. I was more or less being the youngest in the family, being pampered. Even I remember being pampered. Life was no big deal. No ambition, this and that. What I went through was expected of me, basically. There were others who were already taking that path, and for me there was no, any other path. There was no pushing, it was just a matter of natural course of events, in my case. And no particular pressure or anything like that, basically.
MN: Like when you were entering high school, was there any advice given to you by your older siblings?
KM: No, no. You see, because at that point, Katsuaki, when I went to high school, Katsuaki was already out of high school. So basically nobody was home. When I started to go high school, I was the only one at home. Tsukie had already gone to Japan, Katsuro was on the mainland, Fumiye may have been at the university, and Paul, Katsuaki. If I look at it chronologically, I'm sure I can figure out who was at home when I was a freshman.
MN: Do we have time for one more question? Okay. Since you mentioned that Tsukie was in Japan, how did she end up in Japan?
KM: She, I think, went as a member of a YBA group, I think. I think it was connected with some, if I remember correctly, and then decided. And we had some relatives. Like for instance, I don't know if I said earlier, but my name is named after Dr. Haida. At that point, the Haida family was already living in Japan, and so she was in contact with them. And I think after the primary purpose of the visit, which was attending some kind of convention, I think the Haida family had some influence on her staying back. Because she was English-speaking and Japanese-speaking, one of the early bilingual, I think that's why she, until she got married she was working. Because she was about the first bilingual Nisei in Tokyo.
MN: So what kind of work was she doing?
KM: I don't remember, I think she was some kind of a secretary or something. Because she was the administrative assistant to the Maui Soda Works, which was one of the big companies in Maui, and she was the secretary to the boss. Of all the kids, she should have been going to college, but at that time, there was no idea that any young Nisei girl would go to university. No thought of girls going to university, and she being the oldest in the family. I heard this so many times from my older sisters, especially Fumiye, that Tsukie was the one that should have been, she had the brain and everything to go to college, but never did.
MN: And then you said that she was influenced by the Haida family, Dr. Haida's family. At that time, then, did she know the Haida that became the famous musician, singer?
KM: Oh, yeah, those were the family, the Haida Katsuhiko and Haruhiko and then two sisters. One was a pianist.