Garden of Her Heart (Hearts of the War Book 1)
Page 28
At family gatherings, one of my aunts often brought a platter of golden-fried chicken that had such a unique, yet utterly addictive flavor. As a child, all I knew was that one of her Japanese neighbors had shared the recipe. As an adult, I finally got my hands on the recipe and learned that this particular dish supposedly originated from some of the Japanese families in the area.
Mafa chicken is delicious fresh and hot, but I think it tastes even better the next day. Enjoy!
Mafa Chicken
2 pounds of boneless chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
½ cup soy sauce
1 cup funyu (fermented bean curds)
4 eggs
flour
1 tsp. salt
Mix sugar, soy sauce, funyu and eggs. Pour into a resealable plastic bag (or you can leave in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap) add chicken pieces, and marinate overnight.
Mix flour and salt together and set aside.
Heat about 1 to 1 ½ inches of oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Roll each piece of chicken in flour and fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towel and serve.
Author’s Note
Picture a beautiful summer day when the sky is clear, the temperature is warm, but not uncomfortably so, and the humidity is low.
On one of those ideal summer days in Portland, Oregon, Captain Cavedweller and I climbed a hilly path to visit the Japanese Garden. We heard it was “nice” and “pretty,” but we had no idea what to expect.
After we topped the hill and paid our admission at the little gate booth, we walked inside the garden, spellbound by the beauty around us. For a few minutes, we didn’t move, absorbed in the wonder of being transported to a completely different world in a matter of a few steps. The garden — oh, such a lovely garden. I highly recommend visiting it if you are ever in the area. There are ponds with bright orange fish, walking paths, raked sand, and a waterfall. In truth, in my mind’s eye, it is Miko’s secret garden, only bigger.
It was while we wandered along the moss-covered stones and stepped across the wooden bridges that the idea for this story began to percolate. What if there was a girl who lived in a secret garden? Why would she be there? What scenario would drive her into hiding in a Japanese garden up on a hilltop that no one knew was there?
As Captain Cavedweller and I ambled among weeping cherry trees and vibrant flowering bushes, I blurted out my thoughts. Then somehow, in a wonderful blending of ideas, we both arrived at the conclusion of World War II. A Japanese girl would have every reason to hide, had she the opportunity to do so, in 1942 when the government ordered all Japanese along the West Coast “military areas” to report to assembly centers.
Captain Cavedweller and I visited a wonderful museum in Portland called the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center. Located in an area where the Japanese used to have many businesses near downtown, the museum provides a glimpse into the internment experience. The photos and stories shared broke my heart at what the Japanese Americans endured.
In this story, Miko’s family is summoned to the Portland Assembly Center. In reality, the Portland Assembly Center really was the Portland Livestock Exposition Pavilion. The government housed more than 3,500 detainees under one roof there, using plywood to divide the space into apartments. The manure beneath the hastily constructed floor and the flies buzzing everywhere added to the trying conditions, especially during the summer months the Oregon evacuees were held.
Meals were served in a mess hall in shifts. Privacy was nonexistent. The “apartments” had enough floor space for about five Army cots. Rough eight-foot high plywood walls divided one family from another. With no ceiling, noises from adjoining families echoed day and night.
Notice through Civilian Exclusion Order No. 25 and No. 26 posted April 28, 1942, provided instructions about reporting to the assembly center. All Japanese in the evacuation area, regardless of citizenship or birthright, had until noon, Tuesday, May 5, to report to the center. Those who failed to report would be “liable to the criminal penalties provided by Public Law No. 503.”
When that particular public law was in the works, the first draft suggested violators be charged as felons and face penalties of up to a $5,000 fine and five years of imprisonment. Agreement was reached that the penalties were too harsh, so the law passed with violations as a misdemeanor and limited the maximum prison term to one year.
As I created Miko’s character, I tried to envision how desperate she would be to reach the center on time. I imagined how terrified she would feel after missing that deadline.
The evacuees were instructed to bring bedding and linens, toilet articles, extra clothing and “essential personal effects for each member of the family.” All items had to be securely packaged, tied, and tagged with the name of the owner and numbered (with detail provided from the Civil Control Station, where each head of household had to report prior to the evacuation). The size and number of packages was limited to what each individual could carry.
In a matter of days, the evacuees had to either sell or find somewhere to store nearly all their possessions. Many sold their homes, their business, and their vehicles, taking mere pennies on the dollar because they had no idea if or when they would return.
“Only what we could carry was the rule; so we carried Strength, Dignity and Soul.”
This quote from Lawson Inada makes me teary-eyed each time I read it, but it sums up so much of what I have read and learned about the Japanese internment.
The Portland Assembly Center functioned like a small town with various divisions. They even had a newspaper called The Evacuazette that came out twice weekly. Thanks to the efforts of the director of the recreation department in Portland, the assembly center had a recreation program to help combat the boredom.
By September, evacuees boarded trains and arrived at internment camps. Many were sent to Minidoka, Idaho, while others went to Heart Mountain in Wyoming, or Tule Lake in California. Guards patrolled the train cars, shades were kept drawn over the windows, and many of the evacuees had no idea where they were headed.
For more information about their experiences, a wealth of detail is available in the Densho Encyclopedia.
Although many don’t know of it, the government did detain several thousand German and Italian residents during the war. In fact, Ellis Island served as an internment camp for German, Italian, and Japanese in the years of World War II.
A few other tidbits from the story I’d like to share with you…
As a girl, I remember seeing a big box of Oxydol at my grandma’s house every time we went there. The washing machine and dryer were located in a little laundry area next to the bathroom. I can’t tell you how many times I inhaled the aroma of the soap in my childhood. I will forever equate sparkling white laundry to that smell and my grandma.
The first “vehicle” I learned to drive was a Ford 9N tractor. My dad sold it a few years ago, but boy, did I love driving that thing as a kid. My grandpa also had a Ford 9N tractor. According to Dad, in 1942, Grandpa had gone on a trip to Amarillo, Texas, to get parts (they lived in Oklahoma at the time). He spotted a brand-new 9N at a dealership and stopped to see if it was for sale. After the war started, it was nearly impossible to purchase a new vehicle. Apparently, the dealership missed that memo or excluded tractors because Grandpa purchased it on the spot. As a little tribute to my dad and grandpa, I had to include a mention of the tractor.
Back in the day, I used to play the piano (or play at playing the piano). One year for my birthday, my brother gave me a subscription to a sheet music magazine. Six times a year, new piano pieces arrived in my mailbox, neatly bound inside a colorful magazine cover. The songs varied from pop selections to golden oldies. I believe it was the June issue, with a lovely moon scene on the cover, which included the song “Moonlight Serenade.” I’d never heard the song before, but as I sat down and picked out the notes, I fell in love with the words and the tune.
It’s dreamy. It’s romanti
c. It’s beautiful.
It embodied everything my sentimental little teenage heart longed to experience.
Composed by Glenn Miller with lyrics by Mitchell Parish, “Moonlight Serenade” became one of Miller’s signature tunes. It spent many weeks at the top of the Billboard charts in 1939, and was released in November 1943 by the US Army on a V-Disc. V-Discs (V for Victory) were records sent overseas to troops as part of a morale-boosting program during World War II. Many popular singers, big bands, and orchestras recorded special V-Disc records.
“Moonlight Serenade” just happened to be my introduction to songs from the World War II era. I adored the soft romantic tunes, the peppy swing songs, and the big band beat. It seemed only fitting to include a few of them in this story, especially with Rock and Miko trying so hard not to fall in love.
The scene where “Moonlight Serenade” played in the background I envisioned long before I put the words on the page. Part of it came from listening to Ella Fitzgerald’s sing. Part of it came from a piece of art I have on the wall above my desk. When Captain Cavedweller and I were last in Las Vegas, we stopped to watch a street vendor who created the most amazing paintings with spray paint (yes, spray paint!). Anyway, the idea for this book was already dancing around in my head, and the moment I saw him painting a big silvery moon above a rippling pool of water surrounded by shadowy trees, I knew I had to have it. And CC, being the awesome guy that he is, lugged the painting around for me the rest of the evening. The combination of listening to Ella’s sultry voice, the fabulous painting hanging right in my line of view, and my own personal opinion that June nights are full of magic just waiting to be discovered led to the scene.
One more musical mention… I’m a big Bing Crosby fan. I’ve always loved the sound of his voice, especially on those love songs he croons. It seemed so right to include “This is My Night to Dream.” If you’ve never heard the song, you can find a YouTube clip.
My search for the perfect car for Miko ended when I “clapped my opticals” on a 1941 Packard Convertible. Goodness gracious! I think I fell in love on the spot. The color, Laguna Maroon, just sounds so glamorous, doesn’t it? I’m adding it to my list of dream cars I hope to see in person someday.
Originally, I planned for Rock to be a Flying Tiger, those famed heroes who flew for the Chinese and battled against Japan before the United States officially entered the war. However, because there were so few of them and because their service is so well documented, I started to worry about doing justice to the Flying Tigers.
A few chapters into the story, I switched Rock to serving in the Battle of the Atlantic instead and stationed him at Waller Field Air Force Base until his accident. The air base, named after United States Army Air Force Major Alfred J. Waller, a distinguished World War I combat pilot, was officially activated in September 1941.
You might wonder why Rock’s debilitating illness suddenly disappeared, other than Miko’s care. I wanted there to be a reason everyone thought he was dying, but for the source to be something simple to fix. The answer came as I researched penicillin use in the war. It was a fairly new drug in those days, but its effectiveness at curing infection had already been explored. Although I pushed the timeline a bit on having Rock’s doctor administer it to him, it worked well with the story. Rock’s symptoms are all caused by an allergic reaction to the penicillin that his doctor didn’t recognize. Once he arrived at the farm and the medication worked out of his system, he healed. I like to think Miko’s tender care helped him, too.
As for nasty Norman Ness, he died of lead poisoning by eating too many contaminated pieces of candy. The idea for the villain to give himself lead poisoning through imported candy came from articles I read about lead poisoning deaths in the 1940s… from candy manufactured in a facility that exposed their products to high quantities of lead. It seemed fitting for Norman to poison himself gradually with each piece he consumed. The candy binge the day he attacked the farm overloaded his system. Once the adrenaline from the showdown with Petey wore off, his body succumbed to the poison.
To see the visuals that helped inspire Miko and Rock’s story, check out the board on Pinterest.
Thank you for reading their story. I hope you’ll join me as I continue with book two in the Hearts of the War series, Home of Her Heart.
If you have a moment, please review Garden of Her Heart online. Help other readers find great new books by telling them why you enjoyed the story. You can post your review of Garden of Her Heart here.
Thank you, dear reader, for reading Rock and Miko’s story. May we meet again between the pages of another book.
Best wishes,
Shanna
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Acknowledgements
So many people made it possible to take this book from an idea to reality, and I owe them all a huge debt of gratitude.
Special thanks to Eliza Dee from Clio Editing for helping me tell a better version of Rock and Miko’s story. Also, thank you to Anne Victory of Victory Editing for adding that last bit of polish to the book.
Thank you to Leo, Shauna, Marcia, Charity, Ann, Becky, Susan, Melanie, and all my beta readers for your help, your feedback, and for cheering me on.
To my Hopeless Romantic street team members, thank you for your encouragement, for offering ideas, and for being so awesome!
I also owe a big thanks to my dad for strolling down memory lane with me and giving me so many wonderful tidbits of information from his childhood during the war.
And to Captain Cavedweller — you are amazing and I couldn’t do what I love without your love and support. Thank you for always having my back, being my number one cheerleader, and making me laugh every single day.
Books by Shanna Hatfield
FICTION
HISTORICAL
Baker City Brides
Crumpets and Cowpies
Thimbles and Thistles
Corsets and Cuffs
Pendleton Petticoats
Dacey
Aundy
Caterina
Ilsa
Marnie
Lacy
Bertie
Millie
Hearts of the War
Garden of Her Heart
Hardman Holidays
The Christmas Bargain
The Christmas Token
The Christmas Calamity
The Christmas Vow
The Christmas Quandary
CONTEMPORARY
Learnin’ The Ropes
Love at the 20-Yard Line
QR Code Killer
Grass Valley Cowboys
The Cowboy’s Christmas Plan
The Cowboy’s Spring Romance
The Cowboy’s Summer Love
The Cowboy’s Autumn Fall
The Cowboy’s New Heart
The Cowboy’s Last Goodbye
Holiday Brides
Valentine Bride
Rodeo Romance
The Christmas Cowboy
Wrestlin’ Christmas
Capturing Christmas
Barreling Through Christmas
Silverton Sweethearts
The Coffee Girl
The Christmas Crusade
Untangling Christmas
The Women of Tenacity
A Prelude (Short Story)
Heart of Clay
Country Boy vs. City Girl
Not His Type
NONFICTION
Farm Girl
Fifty Dates with Captain Cavedweller
Recipes of Love
Savvy Entertaining
Savvy Autumn Entertaining
Savvy Holiday Entertaining
Savvy Spring Entertaining
Savvy Summer Entertaining
Pendleton Petticoats
Series
Set in the western town of Pendleton, Oregon, at the turn of the 20th century, each book in this series bears the name of the heroine, all brave yet very different.
Dacey (Prelude) — A conniving mother, a reluctant groom and a desperate bride make for a lively adventure full of sweet romance in this prelude to the beginning of the series.
Aundy (Book 1) — Aundy Thorsen, a stubborn mail-order bride, finds the courage to carry on when she's widowed before ever truly becoming a wife, but opening her heart to love again may be more than she can bear.
Caterina (Book 2) — Running from a man intent on marrying her, Caterina Campanelli starts a new life in Pendleton, completely unprepared for the passionate feelings stirred in her by the town's incredibly handsome deputy sheriff.
Ilsa (Book 3) — Desperate to escape her wicked aunt and an unthinkable future, Ilsa Thorsen finds herself on her sister's ranch in Pendleton. Not only are the dust and smells more than she can bear, but Tony Campanelli seems bent on making her his special project.
Marnie (Book 4) — Beyond all hope for a happy future, Marnie Jones struggles to deal with her roiling emotions when U.S. Marshal Lars Thorsen rides into town, tearing down the walls she’s erected around her heart.
Lacy (Book 5) — Bound by tradition and responsibilities, Lacy has to choose between the ties that bind her to the past and the unexpected love that will carry her into the future.