Discover Nikkei Logo

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/journal/author/hasegawa-laura/

Profile image of Laura Honda-Hasegawa

Laura Honda-Hasegawa

@laurahh

Born in São Paulo, Brazil in 1947. Worked in the field of education until 2009. Since then, she has dedicated herself exclusively to literature, writing essays, short stories and novels, all from a Nikkei point of view.

She grew up listening to Japanese children's stories told by her mother. As a teenager, she read the monthly issue of Shojo Kurabu, a youth magazine for girls imported from Japan. She watched almost all of Ozu's films, developing a great admiration for Japanese culture all her life.


Updated May 2023


Stories from This Author

Thumbnail for Episode 42: Bachan comes to Japan!
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 42: Bachan comes to Japan!

Dec. 16, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

My name is Ryoma Leonardo and I'm 11 years old. "Ryuma" was chosen by my Brazilian papaai1, who became a fan of Sakamoto Ryoma after watching the historical drama. Papai thought that just a Japanese name would be fine, but my third generation Japanese mama2 is a big fan of Leonardo DiCaprio and really wanted to give me the name "Leonardo", so we ended up with this name. Interestingly, everyone calls me "Ryuma" instead of "Leonardo". I love this name …

Thumbnail for Episode 41: Yugo and his mother are separated
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 41: Yugo and his mother are separated

Oct. 21, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

When Hugo was four years old, his parents separated and his mother, Eneida, returned alone to her hometown of Porto Seguro. Yugo's father wasn't particularly surprised because he had expected the separation to happen in this way. "Eneida was just dreaming of the life in Sao Paulo that she saw on TV dramas." "What a foolish son to fall in love with Eneida at first sight." "I can't believe you went out to town without taking care of baby Yugo!" …

Thumbnail for Episode 40: Four sisters heading for Japan
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 40: Four sisters heading for Japan

March 9, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

The four Uchiyama sisters were always together. As children, they played house in their grandmother's garden, and as teenagers, they went to the movies, concerts, and trips together. However, as they grew up, they each chose different paths and drifted apart. The eldest daughter, Yuki, passed a job interview at a major bank and went on to build a promising career. The second daughter, Yuri, married a Canadian she met at work and moved to Vancouver. The third daughter, Mari, …

Thumbnail for Episode 39 (Part 2) What Japan Gave Me
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 39 (Part 2) What Japan Gave Me

Jan. 17, 2022 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

Read the first part >> Around 6pm that day, Sumie's mother returned home from work. "I'm back! Hey, what did you buy? Aren't the baby clothes cute?" she said, as she hurried off to put her grocery shopping in the kitchen. But there was no reply. When he went upstairs, he found Sumie unconscious in bed. The next day, Sumie woke up in her hospital room. When she saw her mother's face, she asked anxiously, "Where am I? What happened?" …

Thumbnail for Episode 39 (Part 1) What Japan Gave Me
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 39 (Part 1) What Japan Gave Me

Sept. 20, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

After his beloved wife died of illness, Marco's father left his only son with his parents and went to Sao Paulo to work. After three years, he finally found a stable job and a place to live, so he called his son Marco over. Marco is 11 years old and his dream is to live with his beloved Daddy 1 ! Every morning they would get up early, and Marco would go to school and his father would go to …

Thumbnail for Episode 38: My Favorite Family
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 38: My Favorite Family

July 30, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

My name is Mitsuno, I'm an 11 year old girl. My dad is Japanese Peruvian and my mom is Japanese Brazilian. I was born in Japan and my mom gave me the name "Mitsuno" from my beloved grandmother. When Mama was 21, she left her 2-year-old sister Monica in the care of her grandmother Mitsuno in Brazil and came to Japan with her sister's father Ricardo. However, Ricardo was unable to get used to life in Japan and returned to …

Thumbnail for Episode 37 We won't let Corona defeat us!
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 37 We won't let Corona defeat us!

April 1, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

In 1998, when I was five years old, my parents took me to Japan. Until then, my father worked at a pharmacy and my mother worked at a supermarket. However, we were barely making ends meet, so we decided to go to Japan to earn money and live a more stable life. At first, they both worked in the same factory, but my father, who was of Japanese descent and could speak Japanese, was transferred to the main office, and …

Thumbnail for Episode 36: Masatoshi's New Departure
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 36: Masatoshi's New Departure

Feb. 22, 2021 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

Masatoshi and Rosana were childhood friends. They were always together, doing their homework and playing. However, after graduating from junior high school, Rosana went to São Paulo to work at her aunt's beauty salon. After that, they lost contact. Seven years later, Masatoshi went on to college, but was unable to pay the tuition fees, so he went to work in Japan. One day, he was eating feijoada and a huge bowl of farofa at a Brazilian restaurant. "By any …

Thumbnail for Episode 35: Finally, Japan!
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 35: Finally, Japan!

Dec. 18, 2020 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

My parents met 24 years ago. My mother, who had been living in Japan with her family since she was nine years old, had returned to Brazil to attend a relative's wedding. My father, who was a close friend of the groom, attended the ceremony in a suit that he rarely wears. Neither of them is sure if it was love at first sight. "I had a really good impression of him at first sight," my mother said bashfully, while …

Thumbnail for Episode 34: Sudden return to Japan due to COVID-19
en
ja
es
pt
Dekasegi Story
Episode 34: Sudden return to Japan due to COVID-19

Sept. 4, 2020 • Laura Honda-Hasegawa

We came to Japan in 1997. My sister was 26 and I was 18. Her husband, Masao, had been working at a factory in Toyohashi for six months, so we looked for jobs in the same town so we wouldn't be separated. Finally, my sister got a job at a bakery and I got a job at a store selling Brazilian products. Time passed, and in 2008, my sister and her husband returned to Brazil with their two children. At …

We’re looking for stories like yours! Submit your article, essay, fiction, or poetry to be included in our archive of global Nikkei stories. Learn More
Discover Nikkei brandmark

New Site Design

See exciting new changes to Discover Nikkei. Find out what’s new and what’s coming soon! Learn More

Discover Nikkei Updates

NIKKEI NAMES 2
The Editorial Committee and Nima-kai Community Favorites have been announced! Find out which stories are this year’s favorites 🏆
DISCOVER NIKKEI PROGRAM
Join the Imagine Little Tokyo Short Story Contest for a special Japanese-language writing workshop. Register now!
SAVE THE DATE
Discover Nikkei Fest is on February 8! Join us for a community fair, workshops, a panel discussion, and much more.