I tentatively call this section “miscellany” and collect remaining stories and new facts.
Ex-Prostitute Christian
In Fernie, there is a woman called Okiku, who is the wife of a black barber. She migrated to Canada with her ex-husband Hasegawa and used to run a western restaurant in Three Valley. However, Hasegawa apparently owned land in Hokkaido and the two returned to Japan. Later, Okiku re-entered Canada by herself. Her real brother was working for a railway gang.
Anyhow, Okiku then entered a cave and eventually became a madam in Fernie, with four or five prostitutes under her. One time she was involved in a conflict and was slashed by her prostitute’s husband, leaving a cross scar on her forehead. She has saved some money and is saying that she will marry an engineer once she is back in Japan. Funny.
However, such a man did not seem to appear anytime soon, so she married a black man. In addition, she even shows up to church, pretending that she is a straight person. But her faith (!) is eccentric.
A man once seriously asked Okiku: “According to Buddhism, those who do good deeds go to Gokuraku (Pure Land) after they die, but in your belief what happens?” Okiku leaned forward and answered proudly, “They will go to Tengoku (Sky World) or heaven as we call it.” The man asked, “Then where do those who did bad deeds go after they die?” Okiku answered, “They will go to Jigoku (Earth Prison). We say, ‘go to hell’”. “Then what happens to those who did neither good deeds nor bad deeds, who were not accused of anything or hated by others?” Omaki could not answer the questions for a while, but finally said, “They will live another life!”
Everybody in Fernie knows her as an ex-prostitute Christian, but nobody knows where her true intent lies. Cave fellows do not say good things about her but it is difficult to judge which one of them is actually good or bad. I just wanted to introduce an example like this among many prostitutes.