Read Online From a Town on the Hudson by Yuko Koyano - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Yuko Koyano
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first I couldn't catch what she said, but Elmie, sitting next to Edith, saw that I was confused. She was so kind that she stood up and repeated the word twice, loudly and clearly. The classroom burst into laughter and I blushed. In my ignorance I hadn't realized that the word was the same in English as it was in German. It was funny.
Doris would just sit quietly and sometimes doze comfortably by the window. I heard that she used to make dolls before her eyes became bad. She was fashion-conscious and wore a red hat sometimes. Louise, an instructor of another craft class in the center, always came into the doll class, saying, "Doris, are you behaving yourself?" When Doris felt well, she washed the knives and forks after our monthly birthday parties, or she took the attendance sheet back to the office. I was glad to see that she sat in the class.
Ola had become a member of the class recently and made a wonderful big doll as her first project. It was so pretty. I missed her doll after it was finished. She liked quilting too. She seemed to be very interesting, and I enjoyed getting to know her better.
Ann was a friendly lady. Because she had been sick, she couldn't finish her Japanese doll for a while. She was from Armenia and had been a professional dressmaker.
Audrey took a long vacation in Vancouver, Canada, at the home of one of her many children. When she was in the class, she helped us instructors as a nice interpreter. Did she understand Japanese? No, she didn't. But she understood what we wanted to explain, especially to new members who were not familiar with our English. She had many children, maybe tenâ"because," she said one day, "television had not been invented yet when my husband and I were young. We were free at night." All the class laughed at that.
Cynthia joined the class late. She started making a Japanese doll as her first project. She was an earnest and polite lady.
Rose's presence was important to the class. Her seat was always against the window, facing Elmie, and nearest to my place. She sat there working quietly on her doll. Sometimes she taught me English words and wondered why Japanese people didn't speak English well even though they wrote it beautifully. She teased me and even spoiled me. One day, when she asked me how my mother was, I answered, "I hope she's fine," because I hadn't written to her for a while. Around 12 o'clock, before Rose left the class, she came up to me and whispered, holding my shoulders from behind, "Yuko, will you do me a favor?" I wondered what she wanted. Then she said, "Please write to your mother. She must be worrying about you." Though I was ashamed of being advised to do what I should have done in the first place, I promised to write to my mother. Rose's words and actions were effective enough to remind me of my mother. I wrote a heartfelt letter to my mother, the first I had written to her in a long time. The next week, before I mailed it, I brought the sealed letter to class and showed it to Rose. After looking at it, she stood up, hugged me tightly, and said, "Oh, you are a good girl, I am proud of you." To my great regret, I didn't have any idea what I should say at such an unexpected sweet moment. Rose, I was happy to be spoiled by you!
Rita was a quiet, gentle lady. She always sat next to Rose, and she made pretty dolls one after another. I loved them. One of them was a lovely clown. She liked to listen when Yoko, Takako, and I talked about traditional customs in Japan.
Edith Shepherd was a faithful lady. Whenever she talked about people in trouble in the world, tears easily came to her eyes. In speaking to me so directly, she often led me to speak my mind in English. Because she had learned Spanish, she taught us three how to count in Spanish. I remembered only uno. We taught her the word for "cute" in Japanese, kawaii. She couldn't remember it by the next week.
Louise, a relative of Edith Shepherd, had been a member of a former doll-making class and
Doris would just sit quietly and sometimes doze comfortably by the window. I heard that she used to make dolls before her eyes became bad. She was fashion-conscious and wore a red hat sometimes. Louise, an instructor of another craft class in the center, always came into the doll class, saying, "Doris, are you behaving yourself?" When Doris felt well, she washed the knives and forks after our monthly birthday parties, or she took the attendance sheet back to the office. I was glad to see that she sat in the class.
Ola had become a member of the class recently and made a wonderful big doll as her first project. It was so pretty. I missed her doll after it was finished. She liked quilting too. She seemed to be very interesting, and I enjoyed getting to know her better.
Ann was a friendly lady. Because she had been sick, she couldn't finish her Japanese doll for a while. She was from Armenia and had been a professional dressmaker.
Audrey took a long vacation in Vancouver, Canada, at the home of one of her many children. When she was in the class, she helped us instructors as a nice interpreter. Did she understand Japanese? No, she didn't. But she understood what we wanted to explain, especially to new members who were not familiar with our English. She had many children, maybe tenâ"because," she said one day, "television had not been invented yet when my husband and I were young. We were free at night." All the class laughed at that.
Cynthia joined the class late. She started making a Japanese doll as her first project. She was an earnest and polite lady.
Rose's presence was important to the class. Her seat was always against the window, facing Elmie, and nearest to my place. She sat there working quietly on her doll. Sometimes she taught me English words and wondered why Japanese people didn't speak English well even though they wrote it beautifully. She teased me and even spoiled me. One day, when she asked me how my mother was, I answered, "I hope she's fine," because I hadn't written to her for a while. Around 12 o'clock, before Rose left the class, she came up to me and whispered, holding my shoulders from behind, "Yuko, will you do me a favor?" I wondered what she wanted. Then she said, "Please write to your mother. She must be worrying about you." Though I was ashamed of being advised to do what I should have done in the first place, I promised to write to my mother. Rose's words and actions were effective enough to remind me of my mother. I wrote a heartfelt letter to my mother, the first I had written to her in a long time. The next week, before I mailed it, I brought the sealed letter to class and showed it to Rose. After looking at it, she stood up, hugged me tightly, and said, "Oh, you are a good girl, I am proud of you." To my great regret, I didn't have any idea what I should say at such an unexpected sweet moment. Rose, I was happy to be spoiled by you!
Rita was a quiet, gentle lady. She always sat next to Rose, and she made pretty dolls one after another. I loved them. One of them was a lovely clown. She liked to listen when Yoko, Takako, and I talked about traditional customs in Japan.
Edith Shepherd was a faithful lady. Whenever she talked about people in trouble in the world, tears easily came to her eyes. In speaking to me so directly, she often led me to speak my mind in English. Because she had learned Spanish, she taught us three how to count in Spanish. I remembered only uno. We taught her the word for "cute" in Japanese, kawaii. She couldn't remember it by the next week.
Louise, a relative of Edith Shepherd, had been a member of a former doll-making class and
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