I’m Gary Murakami, Phyllis’ nephew through her sister Marion.
Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Emmanuel, God with us. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain. O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, behold your God! Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.With these verses from the Bible put into song in Handel’s Messiah, Phyllis Unosawa proclaimed the gospel time and again, in venues great and small, her rich contralto voice soaring heavenward. Each time declared victory for us – over the racial prejudice that locked her away behind barbed wire in a concentration camp during her childhood, over the discouragement of a high school teacher who told her that she could not sing, and over the numerous hardships and challenges of life in this fallen world that threaten to defeat us and rob us of joy. We are here today to commemorate Phyllis and her triumphant life.
When I was a child, I fondly remember that we received a card from Phyllis preparing us for her impending arrival via train from Chicago to Seattle. Her unique signature was to draw glasses on one of the faces on the card. In downtown Seattle as our Aunty Phyllis stepped off the train, we cousins lined up and sang with a melody that I can still recall,
O hail great aunty from the far land of the great soot, we hail thee!Even though Phyllis was living far away in Chicago by herself away from her family, we still felt connected through the many cards and gifts that she thoughtfully sent for holidays. We would search the cards for the trademark glasses like “Where’s Waldo?” and smile and laugh when we found them. Years later when my family moved from Seattle to the Chicago area, Phyllis became our sole family and our anchor in that far land.
Phyllis was an accomplished artist. When I was a child, I daily saw her pen and ink drawings of Italian ladies holding umbrellas in the rain. She told the story of how a friend identified her work. “Those are your hands!” the friend said, pointing to the drawing. She was also amused by listening-in to people as they viewed her work. Someone made a grandiose comment on how she had captured the meaning of life in a painting. “No,” she thought, “I was just expressing how I felt that day.”
To help us remember and commemorate her, here’s a mix of nouns and adjectives covering only some of the A to Z of Phyllis and her life.
Accomplished, alto, adventurous, archivist for R R Donnelly, Art Institute of Chicago, artistic, baroque, Beacon Hill, beetles (cars), bento master, big hair, capable, caring, Chicago, Christmas cards and gifts, classical, contralto, courageous, cultured, decisive, democratic, determined,
Easter cards, educated, energetic, enthusiastic, excellent, famous, father James, Florence (Firenze), Garfield High School, glasses, googly eyes, Grant Park Chorus, graphic artist, Halloween and other holiday cards, humorous, independent, interesting, an internee, Italy, fluent in Italian,
Japanese-American, kindhearted, knowledgeable, lakefront condo, loving, mezzo-soprano, mother May, Minidoka War Relocation Center, Moody Church, New Years feasts, nieces (in Chicago) Christine and Colleen with their loving care, opinionated, oratorio, an overcomer, a performer, poised, proper, private, quick, resolute,
Seattle, serious, sister Jeanette, sister Marion, soloist, sophisticated, St. James Cathedral Choir, strong, a survivor, talented, tap dancing, thoughtful, unique, Unosawa, van, vanagon, Volkswagen, a woman of conviction, a world-traveler, x-ray vision, yancha (naughty kid) spotter, zesty.Phyllis did many wonderful things in the presence of her family and friends, which are not recorded here. But these are written that we may remember Phyllis, her life, and her witness that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that we have life in his name.
In the more recent years as Phyllis’ health deteriorated, she lovingly continued to send holiday cards. I reminisce about receiving a card, searching for the trademark glasses, and crying because the glasses were missing. Maybe the grandiose art critic wasn’t that far off – to me, Phyllis’ signature glasses captured some of the essence of the meaning of life.
We’re here today not only to commemorate Phyllis and to console each other, but also to celebrate her life and our hope in Jesus that is expressed so powerfully in Handel’s Messiah.
I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God. For now is Christ risen from the dead, the first fruits of them that sleep. Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. The trumpet shall sound, and [Phyllis] shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortality.Phyllis lifts up her life with strength, and lifts up her voice with strength, and sings:
Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory.”Others join in:
O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.And I also lift up my life and my voice with strength to testify, we all lift up our lives and our voices with strength to testify, now here on earth, and someday again together with Phyllis in heaven, singing in chorus:
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. Blessing and honour, glory and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen.
