Bitter And Sweet Relationships

"Distance is not for the fearful, it is for the bold. It's for those who are willing to spend a lot of time alone in exchange for a little time with the one they love. It's for those knowing a good thing when they see it, even if they don't see it nearly enough,” (Meghan Daum). Throughout the novel Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, Henry and Keiko’s relationship goes from being good friends to teenage love that is torn apart by distance. But after forty long years of being apart, their friendship and love for each other is renewed.
During the beginning of Henry and Keiko’s relationship they were just friends, but that feeling slowly progressed into something more. One day when Henry was serving lunch to the hungry students
Henry was dumbfounded. She was Japanese” (20). So when Henry and his new helper Keiko introduce themselves, Henry finds out she is Japanese. Since it was World War II during that time, he was surprised that she was going to a white school. As they got to know each other more, Henry began to have some feelings for his new friend Keiko. Sheldon, who was a black man, and Henry’s friend, encouraged Henry to tell this to Keiko: “‘Oai deki te ureshii desu!’ The words came out perfectly. I did it! Silence. ‘Henry, I don't speak Japanese.’… Henry shrugged. ‘A friend just taught it to me, I thought you’d be impressed…’ ‘I am impressed, just that you’d come all the way over here’” (32-33). Sheldon told Henry to say those Japanese words to Keiko. Sheldon said she would like it because it was in her native language. However, she didn't know how to speak Japanese, so she didn't understand a word Henry said. Later on, Henry was going to see Sheldon play the saxophone at the Black Elks Club and Keiko wanted to go. With some persuading, Henry decided to let her join him in hearing Sheldon play. When they
When Keiko invited Henry to eat dinner with her parents, they were having a good time talking with each other, but they were interrupted by military trucks driving by delivering flyers that said that all Japanese people had to evacuate to the internment camps. On the day Keiko had to leave to Camp Harmony, Henry was there to say farewell to her. When he arrived at the train station to say goodbye to her, “Keiko wrapped her arms around him and whispered in his ear, ‘I won’t forget you.’ She pinned the button reading ‘I am Chinese’ to the inside cover of her diary, holding it close. ‘I’ll be here”’ (135). Henry got to see Keiko every Saturday because Mrs. Beatty told him he could come serve food to people at the camp where Keiko was. Afterwards, Keiko moved a new camp in Idaho called Camp Minidoka. Henry didn't like the way he just let Keiko go without saying a proper goodbye, so he and Sheldon went to Camp Minidoka to see her. During the end of Henry’s visit with