By spring 1943, as families relocate, barracks begin to empty. The twelve Wakatsukis move to Block 28, which is more convenient to Mama's job as dietician at the hospital. Ko develops an interest in a neglected pear orchard, succulent gardening, painting, sketching, and making furniture from myrtle limbs. The family, with double the space they once shared, is able to create a more liveable environment by installing Sheetrock. Tight security is eased to allow for walks along the base of the Sierra Mountains. Ko takes spiritual comfort in Mt. Whitney, which resembles Fujiyama in Japan.
At Woody's insistence, the family comes to accept internment as a situation which cannot be changed, one which must be endured. Other residents make the best of their incarceration by taking advantage of "schools, churches, Boy Scouts, beauty parlors, neighborhood gossip, fire and police departments, glee clubs, softball leagues, Abbott and Costello movies, tennis courts, and traveling shows." Ironically, remaining in camp appears much less problematic than returning to a neighborhood where anti-Japanese feeling may curtail the freedoms they enjoy at Manzanar.
