2007 HUOA Leadership Study Tour
By Valerie M. Kato, Hui Makaala
When I reflect upon my experiences in Okinawa, I am reminded
of my earliest memories of sunday school. As a child I recited “The Golden Chain”, a pledge
reminding me that we are all golden links in a vast chain stretching around
the world. In order to keep my link
bright and strong, I promised to “think pure and beautiful thoughts, . . .say
pure and beautiful words, and . . . do pure and beautiful deeds, knowing that
on what I do now depends not only upon my happiness or unhappiness, but also
those of others.” In doing so, it is
the hope that “we all attain perfect peace.”
I understood this to be a lesson of how interconnected we all are and
how the actions of a single person can significantly affect many other people.
This lesson was reaffirmed during my journey to Okinawa.
Never have I been to a land so similar to my own, full
of faces that perfectly reflected mine, but whose recent history is so full of
an alien sadness and tragedy. Four
generations of my family in Hawaii have never had to live through anything
remotely similar to the “Typhoon of Steel” endured by the people of
Okinawa. Yet, despite this history, the
“Okinawan Heart”, full of inspiring spirit, has endured with dignity. In our visit to the Okinawa Prefectural Peace
Memorial Museum, Himeyuri Peace Museum, and Haebaru underground army hospital,
I learned about the shocking devastation of the Battle of Okinawa. By seeing these places first-hand and
speaking with survivors, I gained a glimpse – a brief understanding of the
hardship, sacrifices, and ultimately the sheer will of the Okinawan Heart to
flourish in the face of adversity. It is
the same Okinawan Heart that I saw in the wish to teach future generations the
lessons of that war and the value of peace.
It is the same Okinawan Heart I saw in the people attending a massive
rally to protest the ministry’s instruction to delete from history textbooks
the fact that Okinawan civilians were forced to commit “mass suicide” by
Japanese military during the war. As I
was swallowed up by the crowd, I stood in awe over the sheer number of people,
over 110,000, who came together on an unbearably hot and humid day because they
were so passionate about the truth. Each
individual had the commitment to making a difference and doing the right thing
to make sure history is not forgotten so that future generations can learn from
the past.
More than courage in the face of adversity, the
Okinawan Heart is a palpable thing full of kindness, generosity, and
optimism. The people I met in Okinawa
always had a kind word to say and went out of their way to make me comfortable
or make my experience a better one. From
Governor Nakaima and Vice Governors Nakazato and Asato, who took time out of
their extremely busy schedules to personally meet with our group, to my
homestay family who opened their home to me and thought of my comfort above
their own, to the cheerfulness of Gabe-san and Okuda-san who knowledgeably
guided us through our journey, and to even the shopkeeper in Heiwa-dori who
served me cookies while helping me to repackage my bulky souvenirs, the instant
thoughtfulness and steady optimistic spirit I encountered touched me deeply and
will never be forgotten.
When I left Okinawa, I gained more than the friendships
I made with my fellow travelers. I gained
more than the memories of a wonderful tour of a beautiful island full of
castles steeped in Ryukyu history alongside the march of modern
construction. When I left Okinawa, I
think I finally understood what it means to be Uchinanchu.
I now see how important it is to preserve the Okinawan
culture and spirit – this “Okinawan Heart” through which we are all
connected. I am thankful to my club, Hui
Makaala, HUOA, our leaders Jane Serikaku, David Arakawa and Laverne Higa-Nance,
as well as the Okinawan Government and people who made this leadership tour
possible. I feel invigorated and
inspired by the Okinawan Heart I encountered and it is my hope to keep my link
bright and strong by passing along what I learned and experienced so that I can
make a difference, for my club, my community and for Hawaii.
Rally on October 27, 2007