B09, Yukie Ōba (Ohba) ‘86, Mother, 1935, Kanagawa: Fujisawa-shi
The best way to learn the history of a country is to ask the people who lived through it. To learn more about World War II, I interviewed my mother in May 1985. She was born in 1935, so she was a little girl during the war.
Q: Where were you living during World War II?
A: I was living in Yokohama, but since I was a child, I had to move to a safer place. So I moved to Fujisawa [another city in Kanagawa]. This was called sokai (evacuation). All children under the age of 12 had to move out of Yokohama. My brothers were older, so they had to stay in the city.
Q: Was the bombing terrible in Yokohama?
A: Yes. Almost all of Yokohama was burning. Even though I was living in Fujisawa, I could see Yokohama burning.
Q: Did you know what the people over the age of 12 were doing?
A: Yes. The middle school students were working in factories, making uniforms for the Army. These factories were called gakudōin, and the students lived there.
Q: Where did you keep your food?
A: We kept it in a storage place, which was a hole dug under the floor. We thought that even if our house was burned, we could at least save our food.
Q: What kind of food did you eat?
A: Well, the usual meals. I ate rice, potatoes, and fish. We could eat almost anything, although the amount was limited.
Q: Where did you buy your food?
A: Food was allotted to each family according to the number of members. When we had no food, we ate kanpan, or rice crackers.
Q: Did you go to school?
A: Yes, of course! I had to go to a school in Fujisawa. I didn’t have any difficulties going to school.
Q: What did you feel when you heard the Emperor’s surrender speech?
A: I was in Tōkyō when the Emperor made that speech. I was listening to a record with my brothers and sisters. Then a policeman heard the sound of our record, and he yelled at us and ordered us to listen to the radio. I was a small girl at that time, so I did not have any special emotions, but I just learned that the war had ended. So the only thing that I remember is that I was yelled at by the policeman.