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RP: Tell us a little bit about your, your father.

MS: Yes. My father came over... actually, my father was the oldest son and gave up his inheritance to come to United States. And I think partly because he was a little more adventurous than the rest of the family. And... let's see, when did he... I think he came over in 1905, but I'm not sure. I saw the papers once.

RP: Can you give us his name?

MS: Yes, his, well, his name was Masanari, Masanari Ichino.

RP: Spell that for us.

MS: M-A-S-A-N-A... let's see, what was it, Masa-na-ri, then R-I.

RP: Okay. Where did your father come from in Japan?

MS: From Nagoya. And, and my mother also, from that same, well, near the same area in Aichi-ken. That's all... Nagoya's in Aichi-ken. So, and it was of course an arranged marriage but apparently there was, yes, there must have been some feeling there.

RP: Did your father come over here first and then the marriage was arranged, then he went back?

MS: I, well, she came on over as... and I don't really know too much about that era.

RP: Do you know what your father's family did in Japan? Were they landowners, farmers?

MS: You know, I'm not really sure. And part of that is because we did have that language barrier. So we didn't really talk too much in terms of... and his English was adequate for general purposes but not... and we didn't, we didn't really talk that much. It was not a family that was very, oh, what... we really didn't communicate that much it seemed like. And I think even all the children, grew up so differently and we followed very different paths. And, and of course there was a family bond. But I know that you also interviewed Mary Ichino who married my brother, and her family was almost the exact opposite. [Laughs]

RP: Very much more communicative?

MS: Yeah, oh yes, very much so. They had a very different tradition.

RP: When you look, imagine your father in your mind, what do you remember most about him? His personality, his...

MS: Well, there was an integrity and he was very... he was able to do a lot of different things in his youth. I know he built a house, and I remember the porch. I had never seen that because that was the one in Inglewood, but the porch had the trunk of a tree as one of the posts. And I liked that, I thought that was very good-looking. And that of course he brought from Japan, the feeling that you carry the natural. And I think a love of nature there, too, because the nursery and the plants, taking care of the plants and, yes.... and he was very proud. Because, you know, you take care of yourself and your own. And I remember he went through a very difficult time in terms of finances. So I think he, because, I think he lost... he had a number of plants that he had spent a few years growing, and he must have had a loan from the bank for the initial start. But he felt that they needed to grow a little bit taller, which meant another year or two of care. But he would need an additional loan, I think the bank wouldn't give it to him. So he had to sell the plants and wasn't able to make what he thought he would be able to make. But I know there must have been a very difficult time because my brother speaks of the fact that they lived in a very poor house. And at times, apparently, he even went hungry. And went to... and a neighbor came over and gave, I think, a loaf of bread, or whatever, which I think she made. And I think it was a neighborly gesture which was very nice. But when my father came home, apparently, apparently he said that he doesn't take charity, and sent my brother back with it. So that was, so there was a deep pride in that sense.

RP: You said your father went to school when he came to America?

MS: Yes, he, yes. He went to school here and that might have been very embarrassing because he was young but he was, had to go to the equivalent of an elementary school to learn. And he was, of course, far ahead of everybody in terms of, especially math and things like that. But he did learn enough English to get around. And I know that all of the early immigrants helped each other. So, yes. He might have worked in the home initially, before he had enough money to start a place. Because I remember he, he had asked friends about oh, how do you cook this or do that or... [Laughs] Yes.

RP: Well, he settled originally in the Los Angeles area?

MS: I think, yeah, I think so, yes. Because all I've heard about is just the Inglewood and then La Crescenta and then from then on I knew, so...

RP: Tell us a little bit about your mother.

MS: My mother was very quiet. And she had, she must have had a tremendous inner strength to have gone through so much. And she never complained, and she never said anything, what, bad about anybody. I can remember that because I had never heard her say anything disapproving of anything, anyone. And, and she had a very quiet humility, yes. I remember thinking that, I think it was in Sunday school when we were talking about different virtues, and humility was one of the virtues. And I thought, oh, my mother's the only person I know that, that seemed to have that kind of very soft humility, yes. But she had that inner strength because she had six children and had gone through so much. And had never, never complained and never... I know later I wondered where she got that strength, that really quiet strength, yes.

RP: Did she, did she take to America? You know, did it, did it, did she...

MS: Well, I don't think, I don't think she had much of a chance in terms of she was never able to go to school since she was taking care of children and everything, and didn't learn the language. And of course, worked so hard from early morning to late at night. When we had our flower shop, the hours, obviously, were anywhere from about four-thirty on to nine, ten, had to be ten at night. 'Cause we closed the shop at ten -- nine. And then she had to count the money and get ready for tomorrow and of course my father left for the flower market early in the morning. And so she got up to make breakfast. So...

RP: Was this in Inglewood?

MS: No, this was later, after, after we left the Bissells'.

RP: Oh, okay.

<End Segment 2> - Copyright © 2009 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.