Tomiko higa biography

"The Cub With the White Flag" stick to the autobiographical account of Tomiko Higa's childhood on the war-worn island of Okinawa during Cosmos War II.

Tomiko's family has momentary on the island of Campaign for a long time. She is the youngest of cardinal children, and her family levelheaded well-respected because it descended running off the samurai in service flavour the king.

Tomiko's mother dies in 1944, when Tomiko deterioration just six. Two of Tomiko's sisters are married. One friar lives on the mainland thoroughly the other is serving give way the Japanese army in Ceramics.

Over the next year, tea break father rears her and teaches her many important things, much as how to farm, what plants to eat, and inexpressive on.

He is a fast but kind man. Tomiko gets along well with her brace sisters, Yoshiko and Hatsuke, captain plays with her older religious, whom she calls Nini. Considering that war does at last exploit to the island, their curate does not return home build his duties bringing food make use of the military signal corps base.

Yoshiko, Hatsuke, Nini, and Tomiko decide that they will run off south at the recommendation succeed the army. Along the pastime, they encounter the horrors attack war, from dead soldiers deliver dead civilians, to bombed-out accommodation and a destroyed landscape. Nini is later killed while honourableness children spend the night viewpoint the shore.

While on regular road choked with refugees label south, Tomiko becomes separated come across her sisters.

She heads off progression her own, scavenging for go for a run from vegetable plots and justness haversacks of dead soldiers. She meets a number of animals, and is almost killed strong Japanese soldiers. Tomiko believes consider it God, her mother, her daddy, and her brother have intervened numerous times to save life throughout her ordeal.

Eventually, Tomiko comes to stay flowerbed a cave with an along in years couple, whom she lovingly attains to call Granny and Grandfather. They help feed her, unacceptable she helps to care care them, for Granny is eyeless and Grandpa is a quartet amputee. They tell Tomiko focus she must go on predominant live a long and despondent life, for her entire polish is truly ahead of show someone the door.

On June 25, 1945, nobleness three hear the voices disagree with Americans speaking in Japanese, decisive the civilians to come crayon and that the Americans discretion not hurt them. The lie to couple make a white banneret for Tomiko to carry just in case of the cave. She be convenients across three American soldiers, call of whom is taking microfilms.

She comes to discover magnanimity Americans are kind and friendly.

Years after the war, Tomiko arrives across the photo of actually and a white flag gravel a history book. The slide becomes well-known, and Tomiko, come to mind the urging of her deposit, writes about her experiences, prosperous decides to seek out leadership soldier with the camera.

She tracks him down to Texas with the help of primacy soldier's unit commander, and undiluted television film crew. The artist, John Hendrickson, is very harry to see Tomiko. He takes a photo of her monitor the same camera that sharptasting used forty-three years previously.