The Purple Heart (24 page)

She held her left hand in
front of her and looked at the ring as the moonlight reflected in it, infusing
it with a white light of unparalleled purity. Then she looked back at Hiroshi,
whose frame relaxed as he let out a sigh of relief. He then simply said to her,
“I love you.”

Minami couldn’t control her
emotions, but she spoke back with conviction the words that he probably yearned
to hear as well: “I love you too.” Tears of joy began to form around her eyes
as she managed a smile.

Hiroshi moved towards
Minami, admired her, and placed a kiss on her lips. She immediately wrapped her
arms behind his neck and kissed him back, fervently feeling his warmth suddenly
enveloping her. She had felt extreme happiness before but that moment had its
own place among the stars.

* * *

The next morning, Minami’s
parents were shocked by the news of Minami’s engagement. Minami had returned to
the barrack the previous night, and no one had noticed the new ring on her
finger. No one seemed to also notice the gaiety in her step, either. There was
only sleep on their minds.

It wasn’t so much the idea
of the marriage that surprised them, but the time and place and the surrounding
circumstances. The concerned parents of the soon-to-be bride skipped the more
conventional questions like “How will Hiroshi support you?” and “Where will you
live?” Instead, they asked, “Where will you be married on this camp?” and “Can
you get a marriage certificate here?”

Minami’s parents insisted
that a proper wedding be conducted despite the circumstances. Mr. Ito liked
Hiroshi a whole lot, but felt that he should have reigned in his impetuous
proposal and waited until they were all out of the prison camp so that they
could begin their lives normally, like other newlyweds. Mr. Ito felt sorry for
Hiroshi and Minami because they were going to be denied that opportunity. But
Hiroshi and Minami were insistent that this was what they wanted to do, and Mr.
Ito reluctantly accepted it.

Proposing to Minami was the
scariest thing Hiroshi had ever done in his life. The thought of her saying
“no” terrified him. If she had said “no,” he didn't know where he could hide
himself from her on the prison camp. But he felt it was absolutely the right
thing to do. By marrying Minami, he would feel closer to her. He had actually
vacillated on the actual proposal because he wanted it to be special. His
biggest problem was that he didn’t have a ring.

It wasn’t as if he had
anticipated marrying someone while being imprisoned. One evening when Hiroshi
had returned to the barrack after walking Minami back to hers, he slid onto his
bed and stared upwards into the rafters. He was thinking about his predicament
when his mother entered the barrack and asked how he was doing. He replied
distractedly, almost ignoring her. She went about preparing for the night when
she asked, “How was your night with Minami?”

“It was good. We strolled
along the perimeter again,” he murmured as his voice trailed off.

“You don’t sound happy,
Hiroshi,” stated his mother.

“It’s just not fair Mom, us
being locked up in here in and all.”

His mother continued with
her nightly chores.

“It’s not fair to any of
us,” replied his mother.

Hiroshi let out a sigh, sat
up and swung his legs over the bed. He placed his hands on the edge of the
mattress and his shoulders sunk downward. His head slouched forward and he
looked entirely dejected. Then without thinking, he blurted out in frustration,
“I want to marry her, Mom.”

There wasn’t a response from
his mother when he realized what he had said. He said it without thinking, but
perhaps unconsciously, he wanted someone to hear his frustration. He looked up
into the direction of his mother who was staring at Hiroshi. She had both of
her hands over her mouth with an obvious look of surprise.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” asked
Hiroshi.

Without further hesitation,
Hiroshi’s mother walked over to her son with one hand in front of her while
covering her expression of surprise with the other. She gingerly sat down next
to him and placed her right hand on his left hand. Hiroshi was surprised–his
mother rarely expressed affection physically–but he took her hand and held it. In
a stunned tone, she asked, “You want to marry Minami?”

“Yes, I really do,” said
Hiroshi and continued in a tone of regret, “She’s the one.”

Hiroshi’s mother’s
expression then turned to one of doubt. “You don’t look happy about it.”

“Mom, I want to do it
right, but I don’t have a ring. How can I ask her to marry me without a ring?”
asked Hiroshi sadly.

Hiroshi’s problem was out,
and his mother understood. She then patted her son’s hand reassuringly as her
hands trembled with uncontrollable joy. “Wait right here. I’ll be right back,”
she said.

Hiroshi nodded in response
to her strange behavior and replied, “Sure, Mom, I’m not going anywhere.”

She hopped off the bed and
rushed over to her side of the barrack. She moved one suitcase off another and
unlocked the metal latch from the lower suitcase. She flipped up the cover, and
rummaged through the suitcase until she finally pulled out a small silk pouch.
She turned around and walked back toward Hiroshi as she opened the pouch and
peered into it. She sat down again next to Hiroshi and shook the contents
around.

Hiroshi was confused and
didn’t know what his mother was up to. “Mom, what are you doing?” he asked.

“Shhh… you’ll thank me for
this,” said his mother.

Hiroshi decided to be
patient until his mother abruptly stopped shaking the pouch’s contents and
reached inside. Then she smiled at Hiroshi, who was looking at her curiously.
She brought up a ring and held it up. It was gold with a tiny diamond set into
it. But what it lacked in size, it made up for in sparkle.

Hiroshi wasn’t sure what to
say, he wasn’t sure what was being offered. He asked his mother, “Is it real?”

His mother pulled the ring
back and grudgingly said, “It better be, your father gave it to me.” Then she
smiled and gently rubbed the ring along her pants, hoping to enhance its shine.

“But it’s so small,” said
Hiroshi.

His mother placed the pouch
into her lap, held the ring tenderly in both of her hands and turned to
Hiroshi.

“When your father and I
came to America, we needed to obtain a marriage license. Your father and I were
briefed on the steps and what the short ritual was like down at City Hall. We
soon discovered we needed a wedding ring. We were a new couple ourselves, but
coming to America, your father was insistent that we were to marry American
style. I thought he was so foolish because we were struggling to save money,
but somehow, he was able to purchase this ring. He didn’t tell me how he
managed it in the beginning until he gave me my current ring.” Hiroshi’s mother
then showed her ring finger to Hiroshi that had a similar ring but with a
larger diamond. It too glistened for a moment. She continued with her story.

“Your father took out a
loan from a friend and yes, I probably would have killed him if he told me. But
I have to admit…” Hiroshi’s mother eyes shone for a moment as she reflected on
the memory. “I was speechless when he presented the ring to me. He told me that
this was a starter ring and that when he could, he would replace it. But you
know, I would have been satisfied with this one for the rest of my life. He was
already working two jobs and worked a third job for a year without me knowing
to pay off the loan he had gotten. I have to admit, for a quiet farmer, he can
be so romantic. And look at you now, you have your father’s ways.”

Hiroshi’s mother then
handed the ring to Hiroshi who gently took it into his own fingers and stared
at it.

“And now, it’s yours to
give. I was feeling a little guilty just letting the ring sit in this bag, but
now, we can keep it in the family. Minami is a very pretty girl, and she’ll be
a wonderful wife, Hiroshi.”

“I don’t know what to say,
Mom,” said Hiroshi appreciatively.

“It’s easy Hiroshi, just
say…‘Will you marry me?’” said his mother in an unusually teasing tone. Hiroshi
just looked at her with a smile.

Then his mother said, “It
worked for me and that ring started everything for your father and I and look,
it’s been over twenty-five years and we’re still together.” Hiroshi’s mother
then glanced down at her ring and smiled. She continued in a sarcastic tone,
“Even on this prison.”

Hiroshi chuckled and he did
something that he would never normally do. He hugged his mother gently and she
was also surprised, but she simply hugged him back. She loved her son more than
anything, and when she saw that he needed help to pursue his own happiness, she
couldn’t stand by and do nothing. She would have even offered her own ring if
she didn’t have the starter ring. She patted her son affectionately on the back
as a tear slipped down her cheek. “Oh Hiroshi, my little boy has grown up,” she
said proudly.

Hiroshi had proposed to
Minami because he wanted to be closer to her but it seemed to have the opposite
effect. Instead, Minami was pulled away by both her mother and his. Even her
sisters partook in the preparations. It was their new project that would busy
themselves over the course of the ensuing months. Also, just when Hiroshi was
looking forward to his privacy after his baseball experience, the news of his
engagement leaked out and brought back the unwanted attention, as everyone in
the prison camp seemed to have congratulated him.

Hiroshi saw even less of
Minami, which he found more frustrating. They had decided that they would not
be able to prepare in time for a November wedding. There was much ambivalence
about having the wedding in December due to the upcoming anniversary of the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, so it was decided then to have the wedding in January,
in the New Year. It frustrated Hiroshi even more as the entire preparation
process was stretched out over the next two months but Minami calmed him down
and found his impatience actually flattering.

On the anniversary of the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Americans paid their respects during a
ceremony on the prison camp. There were some strong-willed individuals who were
against going, but they were eventually persuaded to go for the good of
everyone else in the prison camp. Though the Japanese Americans knew they were
being held against their will, they were still Americans and they shared the
tragedy with every other Americans in the nation. They also knew that though
their fate was undesirable, countless Americans were giving up their lives in
the name of freedom. For the fallen soldiers and for those who were fighting on
behalf of the United States, the respect the Japanese American internees gave
was beyond reproach.

The fateful day was fast
approaching, and excitement among Hiroshi’s and Minami’s families ran high.
There was also a great deal of nervousness, as this was the first marriage to
be conducted at the relocation center. When the U.S. Army first planned the
relocation centers, their primary concern was providing shelter, running water
and food. They never thought about the social needs of the Japanese Americans,
but soon realized that they were simply ordinary people doing everyday things
that any other American would do. That included marriage.

With some help from Captain
Doxers, an army chaplain was driven out to the relocation center to conduct the
wedding ceremony. It was decided that the wedding ceremony would be small.
Hiroshi’s other problem was that he didn’t have a suit. It was suggested to
Hiroshi that for the wedding and considering the circumstances, that all he
really needed to wear was a pair of nice slacks, a dress shirt, and a pair of
shoes. Hiroshi refused the suggestion. He demanded to be presentable to Minami.

Like his father, Hiroshi
was a farmer and never really needed a suit. The suits that were offered were
all too small for Hiroshi. He had even split the backside of one suit that
seemed to fit him snugly until he brought both arms forward.

The suit problem caused
Hiroshi great anxiety. But one night, after returning to his barrack with his
parents from dinner, he was surprised to find on his bed a bulky,
brown-paper-wrapped package held together with twine. Hiroshi didn’t know what
to make of it at first. He picked up the package and carefully unwrapped it. To
his utter surprise, it was a navy suit. It seemed new. Hiroshi quickly picked
up the jacket and held it in front of him from the shoulders. It looked about
the right size. He carefully slid into it, making sure not to repeat the last
incident of splitting the backside of the suit.

“Who’s it from?” asked his
mother with Hiroshi’s father looking at the pants lying on the bed.

“I don’t know, but it fits
well.”

“Well is there a note?”
asked the mother curiously.

Hiroshi picked up the brown
paper wrap and inspected it, while his father did the same with the pants.
There was no note of any sort. Hiroshi and his parents were totally bewildered.

“It doesn’t smell funny,
does it? I want to make sure no one is playing some trick on you,” Hiroshi’s
mother said.

“Mom!” said Hiroshi with a
tone of disbelief. However, Hiroshi thought for a moment, and then sniffed the
suit.