Memories revisited
Joshua Boucher
Masayo Emke takes a piece of origami paper and begins folding a crane. With a few quick folds, a three dimensional bird pops out of a flat piece of paper. Then, Masayo tries another pattern, this time a woman’s kimono. After a few false starts, Masayo scratches her head. “I did this when I was little girl,” she said, “At my age, I don’t remember a lot of things.”
What the 78 year old does remember is who she called her “Yankee Doodle,” her late husband, Larry Emke. Masayo married an American GI who was stationed in her hometown of Sendai, Japan. At first, her parents resisted the idea of their daughter marrying an American, but after a two-year engagement, they finally said yes, saying, “You know everything you want; if you want it, go get it.”
In 2004, her husband died from a brain aneurysm, and since then, her memory has deteriorated. She now lives in Atria Senior Care Center in Elizabethtown. Atria has the facilities and staff she needs for her dementia, and also helps with a bigger problem: loneliness.
Her husband had always been Masayo’s connection to the United States. When she first moved to here, Larry was the only person she could talk to, because he spoke Japanese. Now, Masayo spends time regaining a connection to her Japanese culture.
For Masayo, almost everything is strange. She’s no longer in the home she lived in for most of her life, and no longer has the daily connection to family. With dementia, she can no longer remember recent events. Small changes can be frustrating and confusing. To anchor herself during this unstable part of her life, Masayo has found comfort in the habits and hobbies from her first 22 years.
Today, Masayo folds origami, reads Japanese books, and participates in group activities. According to Tammy Davis, Engaged Living Coordinator of Atria, Masayo spends a lot of time in her room, but when she joins the group is one of the more talkative.
“Everyone is very nice,” Masayo said, adding that even in the group, she sometimes feels alone. She takes out another piece of paper and begins to fold.
"It's been so long I forget," Masayo Emke said while trying to remember how to fold a kimono out of paper. "I did this when I was a little girl. At my age, I don't remember a lot of things." Masayo lives with dementia.
"I don't have no money," said Masayo Emke, center. She lives in Atria Elizabethtown because of her dementia. Tammy Raines, an Atria nurse, reminded Masayo that her daughter already paid for her services.
Masao Emke reads Japanese language books and magazines in her spare time. This book is a collection of love stories and comics, such as this one about a young Japanese woman engaged to an American.
Masayo Emke is an active member of the Atria Elizaberth community. Atria has a party room called "The Coke Room" decorated like a 1950s soda shop, where community events take place. Residents drank root beer floats and played corn hole.
"Oh, who's this in this photo?" Masayo Emke said. "That's you, Mom," said her daughter, Caroline Savage. Caroline held photographs of Sendai, Japan, where Masayo and her family settled after escaping a Soviet Union concentration camp in Manchuria, China.
Masayo Emke prays in the morning and evening. Masayo is a Nichiren Buddhist and was honored by Soka Gakkai International for her work bringing Nichiren Buddhism to Kentucky. During her daily prayer, she says, "Namu-myoho-renge-kyo" and wishes for peace.