Pen pals finally bridge the distance
By Carrie Ching
Advertiser Staff Writer
Their letters started out simply.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
"Dear Josephine, I am 8 years old. I have a dog. Please write soon."
Josephine Yamasaki, left, and Tina Fisher review hundreds of letters Yamasaki kept since they began corresponding in second grade. The photo shows Fisher getting married in 1986 wearing a lei that Yamasaki sent.
But 45 years later, Josephine Yamasaki of Hawai'i Kai and her Mainland pen pal, Tina Fisher of Austin, Texas, are celebrating a lifetime of faithful correspondence with a face-to-face meeting in Hawai'i.
What started as a second-grade assignment at Pauoa Elementary in 1960 led to a life-long friendship for Yamasaki, 52, who now has two adult children, two grandchildren and a job with the State Department of Education.
Yamasaki and Fisher met for the first time 12 years ago in New Orleans, Fisher's home at the time. This weekend is the first time Fisher, 52, has visited Yamasaki in her own hometown on O'ahu.
"It's like seeing a long-lost sister," Yamasaki said, sitting in her living room beside Fisher and a table piled with yellowing letters and old photos exchanged by the two over the years. "It's so special to see someone grow up from elementary school to now."
In the early letters, the girls write about Raggedy Ann dolls, pets and summer camp. Over the years, they move into their love for the Beatles, first boyfriends, college, weddings, and children. "It was like writing in a diary," Yamasaki said. "It just poured out."
After picking Fisher up at the airport Friday morning, the two drove by Yamasaki's childhood home in Pauoa. "She saw the street sign — Kaneali'i Ave. — and said 'Oh, that's the street I've been sending letters to all these years!'" Yamasaki said.
The two stopped at Leonard's Bakery on Kapahulu Avenue so Fisher could try her first malasada.
"I liked that it was hot," she said.
Yamasaki planned to cram as much Hawai'i culture as she could into their three-day visit. On the schedule were a visit to Hanauma Bay, a Waimanalo orchid nursery, an Island-style high school graduation and a Hawaiian feast at the Paradise Cove lu'au at the Ko Olina Resort.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
Sharing their different cultures — local Chinese/ Hawaiian and Mainland — was one thing that kept the two writing over the years.
A letter from 1960 marks the start of a lifetime friendship between two girls who began sharing their thoughts in second grade — and continue to do so in their 50s.
"Food is such a big part of the culture here, so I always sent food," Yamasaki said. Mochi rice crackers were among the biggest hits, Yamasaki said.
"My kids would take them to school. Everyone loved it," Fisher said.
In return, Fisher sent her artwork and knick-knacks from each town she lived in, from Pittsburgh to New Orleans.
"It was very educational for me," Yamasaki said. "I lived my entire life in Honolulu. Every summer, Tina's family would go on vacation and she'd send me postcards. I'd look up on the map and learn about all the different places," she said.
On this visit, Yamasaki gave Fisher a homemade orchid lei; Fisher brought armadillo and cowboy boot paperweights from Texas and a sterling-silver heart-shaped charm that reads: "Tina and Jo. Pen Pals Forever. 1960."
One lesson both said they hoped to pass on to their children is the importance of keeping in touch with friends and family, especially through old-fashioned pen and paper.
"Now we have e-mail, but somehow it's not the same," Yamasaki said. "I think we'll continue to write letters that go through the post office."
The only downside, both agreed, is the rising cost of stamps.
"When we started out, it only cost 6 cents to send a letter," Fisher said. "Now it's 37 cents!"
Reach Carrie Ching at 525-8054 or cching@honoluluadvertiser.com.
