Free The Purple Heart by Vincent Yee Page A

leaving only black smothered ash on the ground.
    Miho played with Yoshi,
pointing out the stray red embers that he had missed. Yuka sat behind her
mother and Minami with her knees drawn up close to her chest as her chin rested
on the top of her knees. She silently watched the fiery beast dance. There was
a solemn silence in the air except for the crackling of the fire, the pattering
of Yoshi’s feet on the pavement and his giggles.
    A scraping noise caught
everyone’s attention as they watched their mother drag the bowl and tea set to
the front of her. Mrs. Ito unlatched the wooden lacquered box and revealed the
six beautiful bowls and teacups, each one a bit different as she had selected
each bowl and teacup to reflect the distinct personality of each member of the
family. She picked up her bowl and looked at it as her eyes were reflected in
the black lacquered glaze.
    Minami placed her hand on
her mother’s hand that was holding the bowl. She turned her head and looked
into her daughter’s eyes. “It’s okay Mom, we don’t need to throw these into the
fire. We’ll each take our own set with us.”
    Mrs. Ito returned her look
into the dark glaze of the bowl. When the bowls and teacups came together, they
represented the family itself. They’d used it for family celebrations like
birthdays, holidays or when their father hauled in a large catch. But they
represented something that was Japanese, and thus hated by many. Yet these same
people still wanted it if the price was low enough.
    But that day, she refused
to sell out her Japanese heritage or family. They were heavy, yet delicate. They
would be difficult to travel with and probably would not survive the trip.
    She looked soulfully at
Minami. “Thank you, but these bowls and teacups, they represent our heritage
and family honor. Today we didn’t sell that honor. Ultimately what’s Japanese
is within us, not simply in a bowl.” She paused and took in a deep breath and
continued. “If we take these bowls, they will be separated. Some may break and
may not return home safely. They should share the same fate together so that
they should never ever have to be asked to consider their own worth.”
    Minami was struck by her
mother’s deep thoughts, how the bowls represented their Japanese heritage but
ultimately, how each bowl represented each one of them. The bowls withstood the
battle together but they needed to be sacrificed together to preserve their own
sense of honor.
    Minami’s mother reached
down and handed out each bowl and teacup that belonged to each of her children.
When they each had their bowl and teacup, she gathered her family around the
fire. As much as Minami may have wanted to preserve the bowl set, she followed
her mother’s lead. It was her mother’s time of conviction, a way for her to
hold back something from the community that had cast undue suspicion on her and
her family, had taken her husband away and forced her to make decisions she
didn’t want to make. Yes, they would not get the ornate bowl set. She would
deny them and she would make sure of it.
    Mrs. Ito tossed her bowl at
the fire, knowing full well that it would not melt. The fire represented the
hungry jaws of the unscrupulous buyers, the U.S government, the white neighbors
whom she thought were her friends, and the white townspeople that taunted and
assaulted her. The bowl shattered, and though the fire tried to devour it, it
couldn’t. It was denied the sustenance that was being thrown to it. It tried
again with the teacup, but failed again. Then Yoshi gleefully threw his bowl
and teacup at the fire, then Yuka and then Miho. Minami hesitated. Out of all
the children, she had the most memories with the bowl set and remembered each
event. She rubbed the side of her bowl with her thumb until her mother looked
at her and said with a smile, “Go on Minami, it’s just a bowl.”
    Minami smiled and along
with the quiet goading of her siblings, “Minami, Minami, Minami!” she