Japanese politeness unaffected by quake

TOKYO – She was elderly, alone and in pain. When the massive earthquake struck, a heavy bookshelf toppled onto Hiroko Yamashita, pinning her and shattering her ankle.

When paramedics finally reached her hours later, Yamashita did what she said any “normal” person would do, her son-in-law recounted later: She apologized to them for the inconvenience, and asked if there weren’t others they should be attending to first.

The worst earthquake in Japan’s recorded history barely made a dent in the implacably Japanese trait of exhibiting concern for others even in the worst of circumstances.

Even though Friday’s quake was shocking and discombobulating, few would imagine burdening a stranger with their anxieties.

On a long flight to Tokyo, amid uncertainty almost until the last minute over whether the plane would actually be allowed to land at the capital’s airport, a 50-something businessman questioned a seatmate closely about plans and contingencies: Where are you staying? Is someone meeting you, taking care of you?

Only at the tail end of a nine-hour flight did he confide, almost as an abashed aside, that a close relative was missing, and that he would be trying to make his way north, into the tsunami-inundation zone, to determine her fate. He looked around distractedly and all but coughed out his doubt that he would find her alive.

Still, the ingrained instinct for orderliness and calm has kept its hold even amid difficult moments. The quake knocked out much of the usually reliable public-transportation system in Tokyo. Yet when trains finally appeared on a few crucial routes, the queue was as orderly as on any mundane commuting day.

“It would be uncivilized to try to push and shove, and what good would it do anyway?” said Kojo Saeseki, helping his wife onto a crowded train.