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LG: And when were you born?

DM: I was born May 27, 1938, so that makes me eighty-five years old, or eighty-five years young, whatever way you want to look at it.

LG: You were born in California?

DM: Yes, in Loomis, California. And probably at home.

LG: Do you remember anything from when you were in California?

DM: You know, strangely enough, you do remember, you do remember. The most vivid thing I remember is my paternal grandmother, they lived in the age where you didn't have running water, you didn't have indoor plumbing, you had an outhouse, and you had to go to the pump to get your water. My paternal grandmother went to get water in a large jug to bring into the home. And she dropped it and she tried to grab it, and in that process, the jar broke and she cut her arm. And I don't know how long she suffered, but all I know is it became infected and she had to be hospitalized. And when they knew that she was not going to live, they took us all into the hospital to say goodbye. I think I was around two when that happened, and one of my cousins in the past five years or so, she told me that we all were gathered together and went to the hospital to say goodbye to my grandmother, and I remember that. I didn't know whether it was true, but when my cousin confirmed it, I said, "You know, Carol, I remember that." And being the younger and living with my grandmother, I know I had many pictures of her carrying me. So maybe I was so close to her that I sensed the sadness, and that's why I remember. I don't know, I don't know.

LG: Before we move on, I was curious, just if you could describe your parents, what their personalities were like?

DM: Well, my father was easygoing, but he was the man in the house. My mother was very strong. She was strong but she was weak. She had her, she was strong in that she always maintained the household immaculately, she cooked, she was a wonderful cook. As meager as our homes were, they were always immaculate, she was always scrubbing the floor and made sure that things were clean she would hang pictures and try to make it as homey as possible for us. So she was a good wife and a mother, she truly was. But she had that strong sense in her where it made her a little tough because she had to be from such a young age. And so my parents balanced themselves out. My father, he would give you, like they say, the shirt off his back. Well, my mother had that sternness in her. And she was strict, she had her priorities straight. We were her main interests, the family. And so she, I would say, was strict. That's how I would describe her. So as loving as my dad was, my mother had this sternness to her that she had to have. She went through so much. And she was the oldest in her family, so she felt responsible for her sibling because I think the youngest one was only three years old when his father died. So that impacted her, so it wasn't until later on in life that I appreciated her so much, because sometimes growing up you just don't understand why your parents are the way they are. But all I know is they loved each other. My dad, just before he died, he said... he had a can, and he was saving his pennies and nickels and dimes to get my mother a ring, an engagement ring. And when I saw the engagement ring, you could hardly see the diamond. [Laughs] It was there, but it was pretty little. But it was saving his money and buying it for, a two carat diamond couldn't be given with that much love.

LG: You said your mother was a good cook?

DM: Oh, she was a good cook. And her entire life until my grandfather passed away when he was in his nineties, he lived with them. And my grandfather would go to visit his daughters, he'd have to travel to California or to Michigan to see his daughters, he couldn't wait to get home because my mother was such an excellent cook. And it was always Jiichan was served first, my dad was served second, she was served last. And when you had a steak about this size, I think my mother always got the bone. We were so selfish that we just, as long as we got a piece, we didn't care what she ate. But I'm sure she ate the bone, I mean, or licked the bone. But that's how it was.

LG: Did you eat a lot of Japanese dishes?

DM: Oh, yes, all the time. And even my children did. Because when my husband and I were married, we lived right in Seabrook in one of the barracks. So we were not rich, we were rather poor. And so that's how I raised my four children. You know, in hindsight, I think to myself, "Why did we have four children?" I mean, many of my friends had one or two, but my husband wanted four, I wanted four, we took them one at a time and we had our four, two sons and two daughters. So what can you say? So we had okazu. [Laughs] Lots of it. This much meat, lots of vegetables. So this day, my kids say, "Okazu, okazu, okazu, that's all we ate." [Laughs] But of course, they're all married to Caucasians, so there's no more okazu. They call it stir-fry now, but it's not okazu.

<End Segment 3> - Copyright © 2023 JACL Philadelphia. All Rights Reserved.