Summary

In “I Am Japanese (1986),” Henry left the cemetery and rode the bus to the Panama Hotel. He spoke to the new owner of the hotel and explained that he was looking for something he thought might be in the basement. The owner mistook him as being Japanese and he did not correct her. Henry was surprised there were only three names on the list she gave him to sign. He had thought more people would have come to retrieve their family’s belongings. The owner agreed but indicated people had probably either moved on or died. Henry signed his name as Okabe.

In “The Basement (1986),” despite the amount of boxes and things crowding the basement, Henry was determined to find the belongings of Keiko and her family. He had a feeling that it was not just coincidence that...