<Begin Segment 18>

LL: So now we're going to move on to your marriage.

MI: Oh, how I got married? [Laughs]

LL: Yes. So how did you and...

MI: Well, I have a sister-in-law, Taka, you probably know her. She's a great... I don't know what you call someone that's always in people's business, always fluttering around. And I got to know her through the church and through JACL and through other things. So she had a brother. I wish he were more exciting, but that's all it was. I met Ike through her, and her family, there were eight kids, and it's rather forbidding, and they're the most wonderful family to have, to get married into, because they are just amazing. And so that's how we got together.

LL: So she set you up with her brother?

MI: She really, "set you up" is a good word. [Laughs]

LL: And Ike's full name?

MI: Akira. Just the one Akira.

LL: And last name was?

MI: Iwasaki, yeah, uh-huh.

LL: And where was he from?

MI: He was from a little town called Farmington. I don't even know if it's on a map, but he pointed it out to me one time and it's one town amongst a lot of little towns in that area, and he was born there. That's why I know that that's where he's from.

LL: And so when did you get married?

MI: Oh, 1950.

LL: Did you date long before you got married?

MI: Yeah. Well, I think we did. All I know is this famous Taka, she got married first. She and Jim got married, and then there was an incident where Ike and I were still seeing each other, and there was one time when we went to visit them, meaning Ike and I visited Taka and Jim, and we were, of course, we had all the time in the world. Oh, I'm touching this. [Referring to microphone]. What happened was, the funniest thing, I've thought about it lately, and I've told people about it. But when it was time for us to leave -- and I guess it was time for us to leave because Jim sauntered over to the closet and pulled down the bed that she had. [Laughs] So I thought, "Whoops, I guess our time is overspent." It was very subtly done, but here was this huge bed came out of the wall, they were ready to go to bed.

LL: So just for the record, their names? Taka...

MI: Taka Mizote was her married name.

LL: I just wanted to get that on the record. Yes, I do know her. So you were married what year?

MI: 1950.

LL: And the date? Do you remember your anniversary date?

MI: April 22nd. I think it was April 22nd. It's kind of vague right now. Like I say, I don't have all my marbles. But it was in the spring.

LL: So what was married life like as a couple?

MI: Well, I went to help Ike, because I married him, and it was on a farm. And I would help him during the weekend... during the week I would go to my regular job, but then on the weekend I figured I should help him on the farm, which I did. It was the hardest thing I've ever done. And I went to my mother, and I said, "This is the hardest thing I have ever done, and it's a lot of work." You think I'd get some sympathy? No. She said, "You married into the family, it's up to you to keep working and do the best you can." I thought, "Fine." No sympathy from her. [Laughs] Yeah, he was the best husband, I must say, even all those years. I mean, there were times, of course, when I could have shooed him out of the house, but their family is remarkable. And without their support, I would never have made it.

LL: That's wonderful. So how long were you married?

MI: He passed away in 2013. What's that from '50?

LL: Sixty-three years.

MI: How?

LL: Sixty-three years.

MI: That sounds about right, yeah. That's a long time. [Laughs]

LL: And you mentioned the farm, was this the family, did the family have the farm?

MI: Yes, the parents, Ike's parents, this dates back, and I can't tell you chapter and verse, but the father came over earlier, just like my dad did, and worked on a farm. And then he called for his wife, Ike's mother, and had her come over. And there's a story in there that I'm not quite sure about, but seems to me it was Taka that told me, or somebody in the family, that Taka's, her memory of this marriage between Mr. Iwasaki and Mrs. Iwasaki, was one of those things that the first lady wasn't sure if she wanted to get married and go clear over here. So that was the time when the second Mrs. Iwasaki said, "Well, if you're not going to go, I'm going to go." And that's what I heard. How accurate it is, I have no idea, because I have nothing to relate it to. But I thought, well, that sounds like my mother-in-law. [Laughs]

LL: One of those folklore that gets passed down through generations.

MI: Exactly, exactly.

<End Segment 18> - Copyright © 2013 Oregon Nikkei Endowment and Densho. All Rights Reserved.