Persecution Invisible In Japan: A watching Baby

Hi! It's Shellil Linn. (^O^)

I was on the way to tell you how I became a Catholic since my childhood.

In my age five, the old lady Sayo took me to Presbyterian Church not too far away from my house.
I was satisfied with the kindergarten and Sunday school worship and class. 

There was no harassment, no abuse, and kids were so kind to each others even I have mutism and autism. I was so comfortable  attending the Sunday school. 

The old lady Sayo was a stereo type Japanese Christian in the Presbyterian Church.
She was the member of the Church Council, prayer meeting group leader, and very faithful.

I still remember when she taught me about the Lent. She said that faithful Christians attend the special early morning prayer gathering, for 40 days to meditate the suffering and crucifixion of the Christ. She had never missed a day when I was 1st grade.

She was so faithful, kind, nice but isolated from rest of her family. Since she was widowed in her age late 40th, she had worked so hard to raise her only son. Her son became an elementary school teacher, had a wife, and a son and a daughter. 

The Old lady Sayo's daughter in law was a mean woman. She had a nursery school teacher license, although she wasn't "a child-loving" type while her husband was typically "good teacher" type. 

Mrs. Sayo was trying to act like a "good teacher's wife" even she had trouble handling and caring 
her son Toshi and  her daughter Miyo.  Mrs. Sayo was always upset and mad and discouraged whenever she fail the toilet training of three years old Miyo.

The house was always filled with stinky piss smell. 

The old lady Sayo had remorse of herself that it was her responsibility raised her son a good man, but  she believed that she made a kind of mistake raising her son by he made wrong judge on selecting his wife. 

Mrs. Sayo was maybe feeling so isolated to be in a family with a faithful old lady Sayo and good teacher Mr. Sayo, her husband.

I saw Mrs. Sayo set on Toshi and Miyo to make fun of the old lady Sayo. I was just a six years old child, but the scene was so shocking and became life-long trauma.

Since my parents were both having job, I visited two houses when I feel like to do so. 

One was the former rent-house owner widowed lady and the old lady Sayo. I've always stayed beside the old lady Sayo when Mrs. Sayo insist her kids to tease the old lady Sayo. 

Just sitting beside the old lady Sayo was all I could do at that time.

I played with Toshi and Miyo when other children  were around us, but never played with them when Mrs. Sayo and the old lady Sayo were present. 

Since I had mutism and autism at that time, it was very easy to stay quiet and soundless, so Mrs. Sayo never cared if I visited her house or not. Maybe Mrs. Sayo was afraid if her neighbor make a gossip if she send me out of her house without  any identical reason. 

It was still a good time in Japan, that all the housewives and old people were looking after all the children in the community because the community was functioning like a big family until early 1970th.

The old lady Sayo tried her best to take care of me. She taught me about the Bible when Mrs. Sayo and her grand children were gone somewhere. 

Catholic Ohtsu Church in Kyoto

It was a quiet comfortable memory of me hearing the old lady Sayo's  Bible story beside the sick old pilar. The old lady Sayo was so worried about me, cause I've been all alone until my mama come home around six o'clock. 

I was so worried about the old lady Sayo for she seemed too isolated, mentally cornered by bully of two kids to their grandmother. For me, it was literally "abuse" not a childish mistake.

Mrs. Sayo join kids' bully when their was a church member meeting was held in the same morning. For Mrs. Sayo, gathered good Christians were talking and praying "fantastic good" was so boring and unrealistic. 

I was just a kid, but a kind of an observer in Sayo family at that time.

Mrs. Sayo sometimes invited me to have dinner together when Mr. Sayo come home earlier than usual. Mrs. Sayo maybe wanted to show-off how good teacher's wife she is. 

More Mrs. Sayo do her show-off event, more her kids act rude and out-of-control. 

Mrs. Sayo might have thought that all the causes for her stress is the old lady Sayo's Christian faith. 

So, Mrs. Sayo and her kids always bully the old lady Sayo how stupid to be a Christian. 

I'd felt if I was asked to choose whether I join the abuser's side or abused but being honest to myself. I'd choose not to take the abusers' side no matter what will happen in my life in my age seven.

This little story in a small community will give you some idea on the persecution invisible toward Catholic and Christians in Japan. 

Isolated, divided bully in the closed community without someone outrageous  relationship.
Every situation and personal sufferings are different, and cannot be confident if there's someone to talk or hear. 

No one would admit the existence of persecution invisible. 

And the unexpected case happens after this....