What are you reading?

I love to read, but years will go by and I get so busy and I'm not reading and I feel like I'm lacking something. Right now I'm reading "Dreams From My Father," by my classmate Barack Obama. That book brought me back to relive my high school days. ... Also, I just finished reading "Jan Ken Po" by Dennis Ogawa. It's a funny, delightful read about the Japanese-American experience in Hawai'i. I just felt like I was reliving my childhood.

What memories does the book evoke?

It has really great black and white photos. There's one of an Okinawa kenjin kai picnic, and children running a race, which is what I used to do. I loved those running races. ... There's one of children of Hawai'i: a girl in kimono, one in Korean formal dress, a boy in Chinese dress, and then a Hawaiian girl, some haole children, a Filipino girl — a mix that's so representative of Hawai'i. There's also a photo of Queen Lili'uokalani in a kimono. If you read it, it's like going back in time. Things have changed since then. There are things that are different about the experience my children will have as gossei — fifth generation.

Do Ogawa's remembrances give you ideas of how to infuse those cultural activities back into the lives of this generation?

I would like to promote the kenjin kai activities more, and I would like to see more participation by people from my generation with or without young kids. It's a matter of getting the word out. I think people don't know that it's there, and if they did, they could fit it into their schedules and bring that experience back into their lives.