Joy of Being Accepted to the First Okinawa Prefectures Girls’ High School Turns into …
Joy of Being Accepted to the First Okinawa Prefectures Girls’ High School Turns into ...
Name: Eiko Omija (17大見謝英子)
Age at the time: 13 years old
Status at the time: Just prior to enrolling in First Okinawa Prefectural Girls’ High School (Girls’ Student Corps)
[Participating in the Enrollment Ceremony ...]
My father was against my enrolling in the girls’ school, saying: “You have to help you mother, so you don’t need to go to the girls’ school.” However, after repeatedly sending him letters asking for his approval, he finally gave in, and when I was thirteen years old, my cousins and I took the entrance exam. We passed the exam, and we were happy when we saw our names on the newspaper.
My mother had evacuated to Kijoka in the northern area of the main island of Okinawa, but since there was an enrollment ceremony, I stayed to participate in the ceremony with my cousins. At the time, First Okinawa Prefectural Girls’ High School was a school that we all longed for, so I stayed because I wanted to participate in the enrolment ceremony by all means.
[Killed in a mortar attack]
I was staying at my uncle’s home, but several days later, we decided to evacuate because the enemy forces had already advanced to Shuri, and my uncle and aunt found an air-raid shelter where we could enter. Later, the air-raid shelter came under attack while all our relatives were sleeping, and my grandmother was killed instantly. I suffered an eye injury and was crying loudly. I don’t remember, but I apparently said to my neighbor: “Please let me die.” My grandfather went to the field to bury my grandmother’s dead body there.
On the next day, we left that air-raid shelter. We were to go to an air-raid shelter in a district called Taira in Tomigusuku. We went there with my aunt carrying me on her back. We arrived at the air-raid shelter several hours later.
[A Japanese soldier without hands and legs]
In the air-raid shelter, there was a soldier with no hands and legs. Even though he had no hands and legs, he was writhing around, so my cousins and I were startled. He said: “Please let me drink some water. I don’t mind dying after I drink the water.” So, we looked for a 1-sho (1.8 liters) bottle and a well, and went to get water from the well. On our way back, we spilled some water, so we left the bottle by the soldier’ mouth and ran away from there immediately because we were scared.
[Reunion with my mother]
American soldiers passed by, saying: “Detekoi, detekoi (Come out, come out).” However, we kept hiding during the morning. Nevertheless, around three o’clock in the afternoon, we were told: “Come out because the war is over.” Since we were seen by the American soldiers, we came out of the air-raid shelter, prepared to get killed.
The American soldiers disinfected my injured head and wrapped bandages around my arms and legs.
Later, we were taken to Yanbaru after spending the night at Zayasu Elementary School in Iraha.
One or two months after that, a middle-aged woman who was our neighbor met my mother and told her: “Your daughter suffered face and eye injuries and asked us to let her die.”
My mother came out from Kijoka in Yanbaru to look for us at the place we were taking refuge, so I was able to reunite with her.
Name: Eiko Omija (17大見謝英子)
Age at the time: 13 years old
Status at the time: Just prior to enrolling in First Okinawa Prefectural Girls’ High School (Girls’ Student Corps)
[Participating in the Enrollment Ceremony ...]
My father was against my enrolling in the girls’ school, saying: “You have to help you mother, so you don’t need to go to the girls’ school.” However, after repeatedly sending him letters asking for his approval, he finally gave in, and when I was thirteen years old, my cousins and I took the entrance exam. We passed the exam, and we were happy when we saw our names on the newspaper.
My mother had evacuated to Kijoka in the northern area of the main island of Okinawa, but since there was an enrollment ceremony, I stayed to participate in the ceremony with my cousins. At the time, First Okinawa Prefectural Girls’ High School was a school that we all longed for, so I stayed because I wanted to participate in the enrolment ceremony by all means.
[Killed in a mortar attack]
I was staying at my uncle’s home, but several days later, we decided to evacuate because the enemy forces had already advanced to Shuri, and my uncle and aunt found an air-raid shelter where we could enter. Later, the air-raid shelter came under attack while all our relatives were sleeping, and my grandmother was killed instantly. I suffered an eye injury and was crying loudly. I don’t remember, but I apparently said to my neighbor: “Please let me die.” My grandfather went to the field to bury my grandmother’s dead body there.
On the next day, we left that air-raid shelter. We were to go to an air-raid shelter in a district called Taira in Tomigusuku. We went there with my aunt carrying me on her back. We arrived at the air-raid shelter several hours later.
[A Japanese soldier without hands and legs]
In the air-raid shelter, there was a soldier with no hands and legs. Even though he had no hands and legs, he was writhing around, so my cousins and I were startled. He said: “Please let me drink some water. I don’t mind dying after I drink the water.” So, we looked for a 1-sho (1.8 liters) bottle and a well, and went to get water from the well. On our way back, we spilled some water, so we left the bottle by the soldier’ mouth and ran away from there immediately because we were scared.
[Reunion with my mother]
American soldiers passed by, saying: “Detekoi, detekoi (Come out, come out).” However, we kept hiding during the morning. Nevertheless, around three o’clock in the afternoon, we were told: “Come out because the war is over.” Since we were seen by the American soldiers, we came out of the air-raid shelter, prepared to get killed.
The American soldiers disinfected my injured head and wrapped bandages around my arms and legs.
Later, we were taken to Yanbaru after spending the night at Zayasu Elementary School in Iraha.
One or two months after that, a middle-aged woman who was our neighbor met my mother and told her: “Your daughter suffered face and eye injuries and asked us to let her die.”
My mother came out from Kijoka in Yanbaru to look for us at the place we were taking refuge, so I was able to reunite with her.
