My mother / By E Ito

I interviewed with my mother. Because I thought she was strong woman and she had some story to tell about... Also she doesn't much talk about herself, so I wanted toknow something about her.

My mother live in Osaka, Japan. She is 47 years old. She's been housewife since she got first married.

*What does woman mean to you?

Being strong and sometimes weak.

I think woman means mother.
Woman makes a family.
Woman makes family happy and makes place warm.
Woman support man, because woman is powerful than man in many ways.

*What event that challenged you as a woman?

A year ago, my father slumped over from a cancer. When I got the hospital where my father was carried to and saw him, I wasn't upset at all. I didn't know why, maybe I was ready for that. Then I went to see a doctor to talk about diagnosis of my father's condition. The doctor said about how long he could live. That was about six months. Finally I got upset after I heard that.

I started taking care of him everyday. At first taking care of him was hard for me, because I had to see him getting weak and nearing his end. I was so sad that I sometimes thought that I wanted him to die sooner, so I wouldn't have to be sad all six months long. Of course I didn't want him to die, but it was so hard and sad to take care of him. I was thinking only about myself. I thought I was the only one who felt suffer. But after talking with my brother, I realized that I should have not thought like that. He was only my father. Six months was only left time for me and my father.

After that, I took care of him seriously with full of love. I always searched about what was good food for him or which hospital had good doctor or something.
Several months before he died, I found it in myself that taking care of him was all for me. When I knew that I was thinking that taking care of him was for me and my job. That made me not felt sad and hard than before.

Now he died, and it was really sad. But all that happens between when he was carried to the hospital and he died made me strong and live with positive thinking, no matter what happen. This event made me strong.

What do you think about your divorce and remarriage?

These event was hard to me and made me strong, and a lot of things changed. I had two daughters that I had to take care of, so it was big decision of my life. I don't know it was good for my daughters but I needed to divorce and remarry for their future.

Now my daughter is studying in the States and other one living with her father and working at clothing store. I believe they are having fun their life and living right.
I believe that I did right dicision.