When Tomoko’s sister fell ill, the family moved from Tokyo
to Yokohama. Thus, Tomoko spent most of her teenage years under the American
occupancy.
Because
of the military presence, Tomoko’s parents told her, “Come straight home from
school,” so she didn’t encounter many Americans. Personally, she didn’t
mind their presence. The Americans started a food bank, a contrast to the years
of families scraping by on their own. And the Americans brought new kinds of
music, which were thrilling and a little edgy.
At her private high
school, some of the curriculum reflected the
remaining United States occupation policy, although Tomoko didn’t realize all
the ramifications. For instance, nationalistic Japanese history was replaced by
social studies, which had a more practical bent. Since the school was
founded by American missionaries, such of the curriculum already reflected
American values. For example, students were encouraged to think for themselves,
and to make individual contributions to improve the community, which philosophy
was not lost on Tomoko. In addition,
English was required; even though that language
was difficult for Tomoko, she knew that English was important because it helped
her get around in a city that served as a U.S. command base.
The
city itself had a hard time recuperating. It didn’t help that the city was firebombed
just before the end of WWII, destroying neighborhoods. There were many homeless
people and orphan children, and food could be scarce. Right after the war, all
port activities and private trade stopped because the American military controlled
such business. Only by 1951 was port control transferred to the state level. Nevertheless,
Yokohama experience great population growth after the war, especially in its
suburbs. That highlighted the need for more roads, utilities, and schools. The
war’s impact did have a silver lining in that the city could build a new commercial
and business bub, and the residential area was planned to be sustainable to
prevent urban sprawl.
As
for Tomoko, her family, school and music sustained her during this time.
