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Hi! My name is Marcelo Jun Ikeda and I am from Brazil. I am second-generation Japanese. In May 2003, I came to Shimane to undertake an internship at an IT company called SECOM. While I grew up in Brazil, I heard some very interesting stories about my relatives in Japan. I'd like to share one of these stories with you now.
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The story I will tell you is just one of several
that I've heard from our relatives since my
early childhood.
It's my father's story, Mr. Yoshio Ikeda, born
on April 14th, 1939 in a small and isolated
town called "Yatsukacho" or as it's
commonly referred to "Daikon Shima",
in the east of Shimane Prefecture. It is the
story of a man trying to succeed in life; the
story of someone who decided to explore the
world in order to fulfill his dreams.
Yoshio was born on an island, which in early
times, only had access to the outer world if
you crossed the surrounding waters by boat.
For three generations, his family worked mainly
with flowers, especially the Botan plant (Tree
Piony) the most famous flower in Shimane and
a very popular flower throughout all Japan.
I've heard the Emperor adores it!
He began Elementary School in 1946, one year
after the Second World War came to an end. He
finished his studies at a Technical High School
and started working for a gas production firm.
After three years he began work as a tool designer
in a plastics company and after this, was a
draftsman for a ship building company.
It was at this age that he knew a friend who
wanted to go to Brazil to gain life and work
experience, to get rich and return to Japan.
This was a big dream for many young Japanese
men at this time. Yoshio himself was very excited
with the idea and decided that he would join
his friend on this new adventure. Of course,
he was aware of the troubles he might face trying
to succeed in a foreign country, but as he was
a young and adventurous person, these concerns
didn't get in his way. As a matter of fact,
I think his son may have taken on some of these
traits!
His friend, who had been to Brazil before, told
him that the country was free of racism and
that Brazil was a free country with plenty of
opportunities. At that time, advertising encouraging
Japanese to go to Brazil was widespread. It
suggested if you worked hard, you could develop
a business quickly and be stinking rich very
fast.
At that time, advertising encouraging
Japanese to go to Brazil was widespread. It
suggested if you worked hard, you could develop
a business quickly and be stinking rich very
fast.
Yoshio came to the conclusion that if he stayed
in Japan, even working hard and honestly until
he retired, it would take a long time to reach
his life goals. He also had lots of ideas about
what he would do in Brazil, including the dream
of opening his own small business.
Unfortunatly he didn't succeed in reaching this
goal because he faced a lot of the typcal difficulties
that many immigrants face when they go to an
unknown land without knowing the language.
Before coming to Japan, he had worked in Osaka
and had become accustomed to the hustle and
bustle of city life. When he arrived in Brazil,
he started working in a city named Taubate in
Sao Paulo State. While it was quite a big city,
it was very calm and layed back. During the
day he would walk past elderly people sitting
on park benches sitting expressionless without
talking to each other. As he learned Portuguese,
he began to talk to these people in the park,
and to ease his longing for the pace of city
he would travel to Sao Paulo.
With the experience he had acquired in Japan,
Yoshio started working in a French metalwork
company in Santo Andre city near Sao Paulo city,
one of the most industrially concentrated areas
of Brazil. He overcame all the obstacles that
came in his way, learned Portuguese and became
a foreman of a metalwork factory.
In 1970, Yoshio married a Brazilian of Japanese
descent, the daughter of a Japanese couple from
Kochi-ken. They had 3 beautiful children, 2
girls and a son, Marcelo.
Yoshio is now retired, but he goes on working
in a small company in the same area. He feels
the fulfillment of raising three children who
have gratuated from a good college and is blessed
with a very kind and loving wife. He has been
able to afford to buy some houses - something
that would be very difficult to do in Japan.
And now, I find myself in Japan, living where
my father grew up and where my relatives still
remain. I feel that over my time here, I have
learnt more about my father. I have also learnt
a little more about myself and what it means
to be second-generation Japanese Brazillian
in Japan.
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Marcelo
with his father, Yoshio Ikeda
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