Mother and Daughter: Japan in 1951

It's Mother's Day: that glorious one day a year when mothers make unreasonable demands and eat for free. That used to be called every day, but luckily things change. Anyway, to honor this holiest of modern constructs, I thought I'd showcase some 65-ish year-old snapshots of a mother and daughter.

This is the Vasilev Matriarch, Natalie Feodosievna Vasilev née Mitrofanenko, being mother-like with her youngest daughter, Lena. And yes, Natalie (or Natalia) was one tough broad.

Natalia was born on September 3, 1915 in Ust-Karsk, Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia (Усть-карск Забайкальск) to Ukrainian parents (you can read about them here). Flash forward 35 years, and the now-widowed Natalia is raising her three daughters in Seoul when they're forced to flee at the outset of the Korean War. They land in Japan, where these photos were taken (sometime between July 1950 and January 1953).

From what I know, Natalia and the Seoul Sisters lived in Shinagawa, Tokyo, on "a little lane off Sarumachi (Monkey Street), a short walk from Gotanda Station." Also, their house was "across the street from a large high school for girls" and there was "a small monkey shrine nearby." I tried to find the location online, but you don't wanna know what happens when I google large Japanese high school girls and monkey shrine.

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These photos must've been to commemorate a day trip to see the Great Buddha of Kamakura (大仏 Daibutsu) of Kōtoku-in 高徳院. Rudyard Kipling called the statue The Buddha at Kamakura in several verses that preface the initial chapters of his novel, Kim. They're taken from a poem he wrote after visiting Kamakura in 1892.

This snapshot may also have been taken in Kamakura. It looks like they're wearing beachwear, and Kamakura is known for its beach.

And now we flash forward about eight years. This is Natalia and Lena in San Francisco, somewhere in the Civic Center. It looks like jury duty, or citizenship papers—but it's actually the 1960 Lowell High School graduation which was held at the Opera House.

Anyway, Happy Mother's Day to you and yours!