After the 2011 Tsunami Destroyed Her Family Home in Sendai, Sachie's Mother Shoko Moved to Seattle, Grieving and Speaking No English

Sachie and Trent met in 2012 while performing on the Canadian fringe circuit, but it wasn't until he befriended her mother that she knew he was the one. After the 2011 tsunami destroyed her family home in Sendai, Sachie's mother Shoko moved to Seattle, grieving and speaking no English. Trent, who knew only a few Japanese phrases, used them so convincingly that Shoko thought he was fluent.

He brought her small gifts—chocolates, manju, daifuku—each time he visited, and she began to play hide-and-seek with him in the supermarket. When Trent left after three weeks, Shoko cried at the door, assuming he was an international exchange student. Sachie and Trent reunited in Japan 10 months later and have been together since, creating performances as the Birdmann and Egg. "Shoko-san, presento."