Before continuing my story, I must first introduce Mr. Yoshiaki Nunome, without whom I probably would not have been able to continue my occupation as an overseas minister in the United States for all these years. Mr. Nunome had arrived in Los Angeles (L.A.) from Japan, only a year prior to me, to start a restaurant business in Little Tokyo. I first met him after a member of the L.A. Nichiren Buddhist Church invited me to eat dinner at his restaurant. I would subsequently dine at his restaurant on a few more occasions and had opportunities to talk with Mr. Nunome. I would learn that his father and brother were Nichiren Shu ministers. We even discussed how I had attended Minobusan University, only to realize that his brother had actually been one of my classmates there. After some time, I was informed that he was moving to San Francisco (S.F.) to open a new restaurant in Japantown. I was still living in L.A. at the time and thinking that I would never see him again. I bid him what I thought would be farewell. Soon after, I was surprised to be assigned the position of the head minister of the S.F. Church and would reunite with him several months later in Japantown. When I first moved to S.F., the S.F. church/apartment I stayed at was somewhat far from Japantown. Despite this, he would take the time to cook and bring me food a few times a month. I was saved on many occasions by his acts of kindness. Once the S.F. Church moved to the new apartment, I was living much closer to Japantown. Mr. Nunome was kind enough to tell me that if I was ever out of food or wanted to dine at his restaurant, I was always welcome to stop by.
It was also around this time when what remains in my memory as the “infamous November S.F. Church meeting” occurred. Being informed that the S.F. Church was to be shut down in a month left not only myself, but also the elderly members, who were also hearing this news for the first time, in a state of absolute shock. Many thoughts started running through my head as I tried to process the fact that in that very moment, I had lost both my job and my home. To make matters worse, this was happening in a foreign country and an environment (language, people, etc.) that I was still in the process of adjusting to. It was also very clear that the Nichiren Shu Headquarters and the Nichiren Order of North America (NONA) had no intention of helping me get through this situation. No one was going to advise me on what I should do. I ultimately came to the conclusion that I realistically had two options: (1) return to Japan or (2) stay in S.F. and essentially become homeless. Returning to Japan would be the easy way out, though it would also mean that I would be abandoning the Shintokai members and also the remaining members of the S.F Church. However, I knew that it would be impossible for me to find an apartment in S.F. given the little money I had at the time. In other words, this meant that I would most definitely end up having to live on the streets.
Days and weeks passed as I continued to think of more options. Next thing I knew, it was already well into December and I only had a few weeks left to make a decision. It was during that time that I received a phone call from Mr. Nunome. He had become concerned that I had not visited his restaurant recently and suggested that I stop by some time soon. Given my circumstance, I had not had the chance to visit Mr. Nunome since the November S.F. Church meeting. I also knew that December was a very busy time for his restaurant, and I had avoided visiting him so as not to “bother him. I stopped by his restaurant a few days after his phone call, and he cooked a full meal for me, as always. During our conversation I ended up casually mentioning my situation to him, including how I had to leave my current apartment at the end of the month. Without any hesitation, he immediately said, “You can come live with me.” He explained that he was living by himself in a two-bedroom apartment, but had been using only one of the rooms. He told me that I was welcome to use the other room if I wanted. I did not expect that a visit to Mr. Nunome’s restaurant would lead me to a solution that would allow me to stay in S.F. and not become homeless. To this day, I am forever grateful for his many acts of kindness.
In the remaining days until December 31st, I cleaned the apartment to prepare for my move. I realized that aside from all the religious items I had to give away or dispose of_mapy large items (tables, etc.) that I could not take with me. Upon informing multiple S.F. Church members about this, many members that never attended the Church services showed up. It was clear that they had their eye on certain items, which they ultimately took with them. After several phone calls, I was able to give away the remaining items, including a couch, bed, and desk. Then on December 31st, I left the apartment, carrying all the religious items/objects and my few belongings. Starting January 1st, Mr. Nunome’s apartment address would be registered with the Nichiren Shu Headquarters as the new address for the S.F. Church. As a result of Mr. Nunomc’s kindness and generosity, the S.F. Church was not going to be shut down any time soon.
To be continued…
Ven. Kenjo lgarashi
March/April 2019