The neighbor with an accent
Norie from Japan
Norie Yoshimoto Durham is from Japan where many things are different than in the United States, Including the people, traditions, customs, and food. Living in America for almost 25 years she has adopted the western lifestyle, but keeps her own heritage alive as well. Norie’s story includes the tragedy of Hiroshima and getting marriage advice from former U.S president Jimmy Carter. Norie lives in Warrenton with her husband Doug and daughter Leah.
Hiroshima attack to her father’s hometown
Norie is from Miyoshi, which is part of Hiroshima Prefecture and about one and a half hours from the city of Hiroshima. Over 70 years ago, the devastating atomic bombing in Hiroshima City shaped not only the whole world but also the history of her own family.
When the bombing happened at 8:15AM in August 6th 1945 Norie’s father, then 5 years old, was visiting his grandmother in Miyoshi. His mother and two older brothers had just returned home to Hiroshima. Their father was away with the Japanese Imperial Navy, but returned soon after the attack. He took the siblings to look for his family, only to find out they were all dead along with other 80,000 people who were killed instantly.
Norie’s father then moved to Miyoshi and grew up with relatives. His childhood was difficult because children coming from the Hiroshima City were bullied and called “bombed-children”. Later he was married. His marriage was pre-arranged, which was the custom at that time.
Norie tells that the bombing has affected to her father’s entire life. “He still talks about his difficult childhood often”, Norie says. She tells how her father was able to build up his life after all and provide normal childhood for Norie and her younger brother. Norie was a very active child, participating in sports. Her favorites included Japanese Martial Arts, Kendo (Japanese fencing), softball and basketball.
Moving to America
Norie wanted to learn English and had an opportunity to visit America for the first time with a Cultural Experience Program when she was 18 years old. She stayed in few different states for a total of three weeks. After returning home she attended college, majoring in English.
Later, Norie lived in Colorado for two years with an American family to learn more language and culture. Her parents supported her efforts to learn English because it would eventually help her find better jobs in Japan.
Back in Japan she started to teach English at Junior High school. She loved teaching, but after couple of years, was offered an opportunity to put her English skills to work as a civil servant at the Konu City Hall. It was there that she was able to work on the new Jimmy Carter Civic Center and help organize and set up the Carter Museum. Norie was the Japanese coordinator and worked closely with an American coordinator to make the project happen.
The American coordinator was Doug Durham, who later became Norie’s husband. Norie tells how their relationship gradually grew closer, and by the time the museum project was all done they were in love. They decided to get married and, in December 1994, Norie quit the job to move to New York City with Doug. They signed legal marriage papers in Japan, but had a wedding ceremony in New York.
They both were able to meet former U.S president Jimmy Carter personally a few times. They were able to thank him for indirectly being a part of their love story. The president congratulated them and told Norie, “Come see me if Doug gives any trouble”. Norie tells how the president and his wife Rosalynn were always very friendly and down-to-earth.
Moving to the West Coast
Norie and Doug moved to Oregon in 1998 to live closer to Doug’s aging father. Their daughter Leah was born in 1999 in Hillsboro and when she was 2.5 years old they moved to the coastal area. In 2008 they built a home in Warrenton.
Norie started work at WGS in 2006 as an Educational Assistant working with special education students. “My job is to help my students with their schoolwork throughout the school day”, Norie says. One of her favorite classes is band, where she participates playing trumpet alongside the students. She learned the instrument few years ago, and is now also playing with Columbia River Symphony.
Norie likes the more relaxed lifestyle in America and really appreciates the work conditions in USA. She tells how it is normal for Japanese people to work very long days without sick leave or vacations. “My first job in New York was with a Japanese travel company and my normal workdays were from 9AM-11PM”, Norie says. This is very common in Japanese culture.
She said even the students work hard, and many children go to a “cram school” after their regular school day. This additional school helps them to prepare for an entrance test that must be passed before going to high school. Students often attend from 5-9PM daily, with even some 3rd graders attending. The pressure is very real with parents wanting their children to succeed later in their lives.
“I still dream about teaching English in Japan, but that will be more possible when Leah is done with her schooling”, Norie says. Leah is a junior in WHS, and plans to attend college after graduating.
Becoming a U.S citizen
Last year Norie became an U.S citizen. Her green card was to expire in October and she applied for citizenship instead of renewing the permanent residency card. She took the Oath of Allegiance and attended the naturalization ceremony in August 2016 with other 71 immigrants from 37 nations.
It was an important personal goal for Norie to complete the long applying process which included a 10-page application form, trips to the Portland immigration office, many sets of fingerprints, an interview, a test with 100 topics to study, and a $690 application fee. Norie is very proud of her citizenship. She can now vote and feels that she is more American.
“If I want to go to Japan for a longer time, I can always come back to USA since I am a citizen” Norie says. It was not easy to give up her Japanese passport, but as a former citizen she would easily be able to obtain residency status in Japan if she wanted to move back.
Norie tries to travel back home to Miyoshi every 2-3 years. Recently she visited more often because her father’s illness. Both Doug and Leah also have visited the country many times.
Keeping up with heritage
Norie misses authentic Japanese food with of its many fresh vegetables and fish. Most food is made from scratch, and is not greasy like many foods in America. She and her family enjoy homemade Japanese meals at least a couple of times a week. “I have also learned to love western food; especially some recipes from Doug’s childhood, some wonderful food we enjoyed in New York City and our local fresh seafood”, Norie says.
Norie keeps up with her heritage by cooking, visiting some Japanese friends and speaking her language with them. She likes to visit an Asian Market in Beaverton for some treats like “Japanese sweet bean bread” (made with red bean paste) or Japanese rice crackers. She saves some in the freezer for the days when she really misses her traditional food. “But ice cream is better in America”, Norie says adding that Japan is not a dairy country.
“There used to be no word for a dessert in Japanese language”, Norie says. Typically Japanese people don’t eat many sweets, and that is why many American foods still taste too sweet for Norie. A traditional Japanese dessert time is 3PM tea time which also includes some treats.
Regardless of all the cultural differences Norie loves both countries and feels as much American as she is Japanese. She feels privileged to live in America and loves the small community of Warrenton.
Annamaria S. Morrill
