After Mrs. Ito saw the state of his apartment, she alerted community leaders. “Thanks for your kindness,” Mr. Kinoshita liked to say in English, perhaps avoiding sentiments that were too hard to express in Japanese. His friendship with “Madame Ito” gave him energy, though she was the one who did most of the talking. On a rare trip outside Tokiwadaira, Mr. Kinoshita took the train to Tokyo. He brought back Hershey’s chocolate bars for Mrs. Ito and for the volunteer who had come knocking on his door.

Source: New York Times November 30, 2017 07:52 UTC