Michiko
was very excited about this week's
meeting of the Better World Kids Club. After
all, she was finally going to get
to show her city to her friends.
She wished it weren't for such a
somber occasion, though.
Michiko looked at her watch and
saw that she was already late. Taking
a deep breath, she typed in the
Better World Kids Club web address. Suddenly
she found herself magically transported
into Cyberspace, where her friends
were already waiting.
"Michiko!"
they exclaimed, relieved that she'd
finally arrived in the misty, multi-colored
Cyberland they visited each week.
Michiko hesitated just a moment,
enjoying the mysteriously magical
feeling. After dozens of Cyber-adventures,
she thought she'd be used to it
all by now, but every time they
somehow materialized together, it
felt just as amazing as the very
first time. With an excited giggle,
she ran to her friends.
After they'd hugged each other,
Ahmed, the Club Secretary, typed
a few keys on his laptop and declared,
"The Hiroshima Day meeting of the
Better World Kids Club is officially called
to order."
"Did
everyone get a chance to make peace
cranes this week?" Michiko asked.
The Kids showed her the brightly
colored origami paper cranes they'd
made, following the pattern in the
PDF-file she'd emailed everyone.
"It
was really hard…" José declared.
"But I made a million of them!"
he insisted.
"No
way, José!" the Kids exclaimed together.
"OK,"
José smiled. "But I did make 8…"
"And
they look great, José!" Erin assured
him.
"Yes,
everyone did a great job!" Michiko
told them.
"But
what do these paper cranes have
to do with Hiroshima Day?" Sunanda
asked, and all of the other Kids
had the same question on their mind.
"You'll
see when we get there…" Michiko
said. Then she handed Ahmed a piece
of paper. "Here's the web address,"
she said softly.
Ahmed typed it onto the laptop,
and they found themselves whooshing
through the hyperlink to their destination.
Chapter
2: Peace Memorial Park
The Cyberhaze dissolved, and the
Kids found themselves standing in
the center of a large park with
lots of statues and monuments and
fountains and flowers and buildings.
"Welcome
to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial
Park!" Michiko said proudly. "I
came here a couple years ago for
a class trip," she said, looking
around. "Every year more than a
million people visit. Not just school
field trips like mine from all over
Japan, but tourists from all around
the world."
"I
wonder if anyone else has visited
by hopping a ride on a hyperlink
through Cyberspace?" Ahmed said
matter-of-factly.
The Kids all laughed, but he was
serious. He stayed up nights sometimes
wondering if there's was the only
Better World Kids Club that traveled this
way.
The Kids were in awe; there was
a lot to take in! The first thing
that caught their attention was
an eerie domed skeleton-of-a-building
in the distance.
"That's
the A-Bomb Dome," Michiko said softly.
"It was near the place where the
bomb hit the ground … they've left
it how it was to show the devastation
that happened to the city after
the atomic bomb fell."
The Kids were standing in front
of a large concrete arch-shaped
monument, through which they were
gazing at the domed building in
the distance. "This is the Memorial
Cenotaph," Michiko explained pointing
at the base of the arch where flowers
lined the top of another structure.
"What's
a cen-o-taph?" Ling asked.
"It's
an empty tomb. It holds the names
of all the people who died after
the bomb fell."
"There
must be a lot names in there," Johnny
said softly, remembering what he'd
learned in school about World War
II.
Michiko looked sadly at the ground.
"Yes, the A-bomb fell on August
6, 1945 killing 40 to 80,000 people
that day… And by the end of the
year about 140,000 men, women and
children had died from the bomb's
effects."
"And
three days later, the other nuclear
bomb that fell on Nagasaki killed
60 to 80,000 people…" Erin added
sadly, remembering what she'd read
at school.
Some of the Kids were no strangers
to the horrors of war, like Jamal
whose country had been fighting
a civil war for as long as he could
remember. But this was different,
somehow. ONE bomb had killed SO
MANY people and caused so much pain
and suffering!
"What's
that?" Sunanda asked after a moment
of quiet, pointing to a flame that
was also visible through the opening
of the arched monument.
"That's
the Peace Flame," Michiko said as
she looked up and saw where her
friend was pointing. "It has been
burning continuously since 1964,
and it will keep going until there
are no more nuclear weapons on the
planet."
All the Better World Kids thought that the
world would be a much better place
when that happened!
"They
should call this water encircling
the Memorial a Pond of Peace …"
Sunanda thought out loud as the
Kids quietly continued to think
about all they were seeing around
them.
Michiko laughed a little. "Actually
that's exactly what it is called!"
"Uh,
guys …" Erin gasped, when she suddenly
noticed there were people standing
all around them. "What's going on?"
The rest of the Kids chimed the
same question an instant later.
"It
must be 8 o'clock," Michiko whispered.
"August 6 is A-Bomb Day in Japan,
and each year there is a very special
ceremony here at the Peace Park."
Michiko pointed towards the front
by the Memorial Cenotaph. "That's
the Mayor of our city of Hiroshima,"
she said proudly. "And that's the
Prime Minister of Japan!"
The Kids watched and listened attentively
during the ceremony. At 8:15 am,
which they heard was the time when
the bomb fell, there was a moment
of silence for the victims and for
peace on earth. Then it was time
to ring the special Peace Bell that
is only rung on this day each year.
Someone representing the families
that had lost loved ones rang it
first. Then a child was supposed
to be chosen to represent the children
of the world. The Kids couldn't
believe it when Michiko was chosen
as the kid to ring the special Peace
Bell!
After that there were speeches and
songs and then peace doves were
released into the air.
When the doves had become just tiny
specks in the blue sky, the Kids
realized the crowd had disappeared
and they were standing in a different
part of the Park. They weren't surprised
at all. By now, they knew to expect
the unexpected on their Better World Kids
Club adventures.
Now they were standing in front
of a line of six towering 16-foot
tall metal gates.
"Hey!"
Sunanda exclaimed pointing up at
one of the gates. "That says 'peace'
in Hindi!"
"It
says 'peace' in Arabic over here!"
Ahmed called out, pointing up at
another gate further down the line.
"Here
it is in Hebrew…" Sol laughed.
Michiko smiled. "The Peace Gates
have the word 'peace' inscribed
in 49 different languages!" she
told them.
Then Maya spotted a large bell nearby
and it reminded her about the ceremony.
"It must have been nice to ring
the Peace Bell, Michiko" she said
wistfully.
Michiko smiled proudly at the memory,
then saw where Maya was looking.
"That's another Peace Bell here
in the Park," she said. "There are
three all together. Anyone can ring
that one, anytime of year."
As they got closer, the Kids saw
that on its surface was a map of
the world. All of the Kids wanted
to ring out their wish for peace.
And so they did, and the Park was
filled with loud, melodious gongs
of hope.
Chapter
3: Sadako and the Peace Crane
Nearby
there was a large monument that
looked like a bomb with a girl standing
on top with outstretched arms, and
a giant golden peace crane rising
above her. The Kids were drawn towards
it as they listened to the last
echoes of the Peace Bell fade away.
"This
is the Children's Peace Monument,"
Michiko told them as they grew closer.
"It's my favorite thing in the Park.
That girl on top up there represents
Sadako. She was two when the bomb
fell, and she survived. But she
died from radiation poisoning ten
years later, when she was 12 … my
age…"
"She's
why we brought the origami cranes,
right?" Maya asked.
"Yes,"
Michiko told them. "There's a beautiful
story about how when Sadako was
sick with leukemia in the hospital,
she wanted to make a thousand paper
cranes…"
"Whoa!"
José gasped. "Eight was hard enough
… but a thousand … no way!"
"Yep,"
Michiko insisted. "Sadako had heard
about a legend that says if you
make a thousand paper cranes, you'll
be granted a wish…"
"So
it was a way for her to keep hopeful
while she was sick?" Ling asked.
"Exactly,"
Michiko said. "One version of the
story says that she'd only made
646 cranes before she died…"
"So
her friends made the other 364 cranes!"
Erin added, remembering the story
she'd read about the paper cranes.
(After Michiko had sent the peace
crane instructions by email, she'd
read all about Sadako and the thousand
cranes on Wikipedia.)
"Exactly,"
Michiko said. "But that's not all
they did. The kids at her school
wanted to do something huge for
Sadako and for all of the children
who died because of the atomic bomb.
Something that would last forever
and continue to inspire people to
want to get rid of all the nuclear
weapons in the world. They decided
to raise funds for this monument,
and kids from more than 3000 schools
all over Japan sent money to help
build it."
She pointed at an inscription on
the black marble slab at the base
of the monument, and translated
the Japanese words: "This is our
cry, this is our prayer: peace in
the world."
This was certainly the wish of all
of the Better World Kids, too. "Now, Sadako's
story, and making paper cranes,
has become a symbol of hope for
peace and a nuclear-free world,"
Michiko concluded. "And people mail
paper cranes here to the Peace Park
from all around the world," she
added, pointing nearby, where the
Kids saw thousands of brightly colored
paper cranes.
"But
we get to hand-deliver ours!" Johnny
beamed, and all of the Kids took
out their cranes.
"Technically
we're cyber-delivering them!" Ahmed
corrected, as they walked over together.
Each of the Kids quietly said "May
peace prevail on earth," as they
placed their peace cranes with the
others.
The Kids were feeling a little sad,
but a lot hopeful. Then Jamal suddenly
burst out nervously, "Uh guys… look
up there!"
They looked up at Sadako's statue.
The golden crane almost looked like
it was moving. They blinked again
and quickly realized it was moving!
The crane rose up off of Sadako's
outstretched arms and then dove
down straight towards them.
Before the Kids even had a chance
to react, the golden peace crane
swooped down under them. But the
Kids weren't scared at all. Things
like this always happened in their
adventures, and they knew they were
in for some fun.
The Better World Kids held on as the golden
crane lifted all ten of them into
the air and soared toward a large
building.
"Looks
like we're heading for the Peace
Memorial Museum," Michiko called
out over the roar of the wind in
their faces and the sounds of their
laughter and excited giggles.
Sure enough, the crane circled the
large building a few times and then
whooshed through the museum doors.
The Kids had, as José quickly pointed
out, 'a birds-eye view' of the whole
museum. The exhibits and displays
showed them all about the city of
Hiroshima before and after the bombing,
as well the history and current
efforts all around the world to
abolish nuclear weapons.
Exhibits and displays can share
a lot of valuable information, but
the Peace Crane had its own ideas
about making the experience a little
more up-close and personal.
Chapter
4: Nuclear Bombs and Treaties
The
Kids were taking in an exhibit about
the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty
- an agreement, they read, that
190 countries have signed to stop
the spread of nuclear weapons, which
went into effect in 1970. That's
when Ahmed noticed something was
happening on his laptop. It looked
like a website's URL was being typed,
but it was all gibberish-characters
that didn't make sense. He didn't
even have enough time to warn the
others, before suddenly the Peace
Crane swooped them down into the
hyperlink.
The Kids found themselves in a deep,
secure underground facility, with
thick lined walls and glaring lights
casting long eerie shadows. All
around there were carefully arranged
piles of dismantled bomb-parts.
Ahmed could not figure out exactly
where they were, but with a few
taps on the keyboard, he was able
to decipher some information. "This
is one of many secret facilities
where dismantled nuclear bombs are
stored," he read.
"Uh,
shouldn't we have radiation suits
on?" Ling asked nervously.
"We're
only virtually here," Sunanda reminded
her.
"Yeah,"
Johnny added. "Nuclear radiation
can cause widespread damage for
a long, long time … but even weapons
of mass destruction can't harm us
here in Cyberspace!"
"Exactly,"
Ahmed agreed.
Off to the left there was a long
row of empty bomb shells. "They
don't really look that big to do
so much damage!" Erin remarked.
Ahmed typed a few keys. "From this
documentation it looks like the
average nuclear bomb is about 2400
pounds - that's about half as big
as a car. But a single nuclear bomb
can produce as much destructive
energy as 1.2 million tons of TNT!"
"Yikes!"
all the Kids gasped.
"It
also says here," Ahmed continued,
"that even though so many nations
agreed to the Nuclear Proliferation
Treaty in 1970, the number of nuclear
weapons in the world continued to
increase. At the height of the Cold
War in 1985, there were 65,000 active
nuclear weapons, ready to be used
at a moment's notice!"
The Kids couldn't even imagine how
much damage that many weapons could
cause.
"Let's
see," Ahmed said as he continued
scrolling. "We're doing a little
better now towards getting rid of
these weapons of mass destruction…
Today there are about 4400 active
weapons … and another 15,000 or
so in storage …"
The Kids thought that was still
way too many.
"Which
countries have nuclear weapons?"
Ling asked.
Ahmed studied the screen a moment.
"It looks like Russia and the United
States have the most. Russia has
10,000 and the US has 8000…"
"WOW!"
everyone gasped.
"The
other 'nuclear states' are the UK,
France and China," Ahmed continued.
"Those were the countries that had
nuclear weapons when the NPT was
first signed. All of the other countries
that signed agreed not to make nuclear
weapons, if the original nuclear
states worked towards eventually
getting rid of all of their weapons,
too."
"That
sounds like a good plan," Johnny
said, and all the Kids agreed.
"Yes,
but since then," Ahmed continued
reading, "four more countries acquired
nuclear weapons…"
"India,
Pakistan, North Korea and Israel,"
Sunanda said, reading over his shoulder.
"All
those countries sure must have spent
a lot of money to keep all those
nuclear weapons around…" Erin thought
out loud.
Johnny had also come to peek at
the laptop. "It says here that the
United States alone spends more
than 50 billion dollars a year!"
The Kids gasped. "Whoa!" Johnny
exclaimed. "According to this, the
US has spent 7.5 trillion dollars
on nuclear weapons programs since
1940!"
"Think
of all the amazing things that could
have been done with that money to
make the world a better place!"
Ling said, shaking her head in disbelief.
"Think
of all the starving children that
could have been fed..." Maya sighed.
"And
shelters for the homeless…" Johnny
added.
"And
new schools and supplies … no more
overcrowded classrooms!" Ling piped
in.
"I
wonder how many diseases could have
been cured with more money for research,
not to mention medicine for those
who don't have access to healthcare,"
Jamal wondered.
"I
bet with better funding, scientists
could help turn back global warming…"
Sol pointed out.
The Kids could think of plenty more
things that could have been done
with all that money, but Ahmed interrupted
their thoughts. "Hey, it looks like
the 1970 Treaty was set to expire
after 25 years …"
"That
would have been in 1995 …" Ling
said, adding the numbers quickly
in her head.
"Oh
my gosh, did the Treaty end?" Jamal
gasped.
The Peace Crane began flapping its
golden wings, calling them to climb
aboard.
"I
guess we're going to find out!"
Erin sighed gratefully, as she helped
give Johnny a boost up onto the
Crane. The other Kids quickly clambered
aboard with tugs and pushes, too.
No one wanted to get left behind
here in this nuclear bomb-graveyard.
Chapter
5: For a Nuclear-Free World
An
instant later, the Kids found themselves
circling high up above the United
Nations building in New York City.
Then the Peace Crane roller-coastered
down and circled the building, finally
slowing down and stopping in front
of a set of windows. The Kids peeked
in and saw that there was a heated
debate going on inside.
Ahmed's laptop filled them in on
what was happening. "It looks like
they had a big four week-long conference
in 1995 here at the UN. There were
lots of disagreements about what
to do about the Treaty…" he sighed.
Then the Kids held on tightly again
as the crane circled the UN a few
more times, then rocketed past the
security guards so quickly that
they never saw the crane fly into
the building.
The Peace Crane coasted down the
winding corridors to another Conference
Room in the basement of the UN,
where another lively debate was
going on.
Again, Ahmed's laptop screen was
filled with information. "While
leaders were meeting at the UN to
discuss the NPT," he read, "NGOs
came from all around the world,
too…"
"What's
an NGO, again?" Johnny asked. He
knew he'd heard the term before,
but he couldn't remember what it
was.
"Non-governmental
organizations," Jamal explained.
His mother worked for an NGO that
was helping to protect families
from malaria in his country.
"They're
usually nonprofit organizations
working to help fix a problem or
address some important issue…" Erin
added.
"Like
convincing governments to get rid
of nuclear weapons!" Sunanda exclaimed.
"Exactly,"
Ahmed continued. "65 NGOs helped
draft a statement urging leaders
to take more serious steps toward
abolishing nuclear weapons. The
Abolition Statement they wrote called
for the elimination of all nuclear
weapons by the year 2000. They also
suggested phasing out the use of
nuclear energy, and replacing the
UN agency responsible for promoting
and regulating nuclear power --
the International Atomic Energy
Agency -- with an International
Renewable Energy Agency. This new
agency would promote renewable energy
sources instead of nuclear power."
The Kids thought that was an important
point to add to the Treaty. On a
previous adventure, they'd learned
all about renewable energy sources
like wind and solar energy. And
they'd also learned about the many
dangers and risks of nuclear power.
Like the possibility of a catastrophic
explosion and the release of lots
of toxic materials, if there's an
accident. And how after all this
time, scientists still hadn't figured
out what to do with the contaminated
and harmful radioactive wastes that
are produced!
"This
is where Abolition 2000 was started!"
Ahmed told them. "By the time this
four week conference ended, more
than 600 NGOs from all around the
world had signed onto the Abolition
Statement. Today Abolition 2000
is a network of more than 2000 organizations
in over 90 countries!"
Suddenly there was a lot of commotion
going on around them. The people
were clapping and hugging each other,
and there were lots of smiling faces.
"Did
the world's leaders at the Conference
agree to abolish all nuclear weapons
by the year 2000?" Sol asked.
"Wait,
correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't
the Year 2000 pass already. Like
a long time ago?" José piped up.
"Yes,
the Year 2000 was a long time ago,
José" Ahmed said. "But no, they
didn't set a timetable to abolish
nuclear weapons. Still, everyone
here's happy because the governments
just agreed to extend the Nuclear
Proliferation Treaty indefinitely,
which was an important accomplishment,
because for a while there, it didn't
seem like leaders could agree on
anything!"
"Yeah,
but José had a point. You said Abolition
2000 wanted to abolish nuclear weapons
by 2000 … so what are they doing
now?" Sunanda asked.
"Uh…"
Ahmed started, uncertainly. That
was a good question. Luckily the
laptop screen had the answer. "It
looks like they're working with
Mayors For Peace now, on the 2020
Vision Campaign to abolish all nuclear
weapons by the year 2020…"
As if on cue, the Peace Crane started
flapping its wings again, and the
Kids knew to climb on board. A URL
started typing on Ahmed's laptop,
and they were off once again.
Chapter
6: A Roadtrip to Peace
The
crane soared high above the clouds
and the Kids loved it. Ahmed was
a little confused though. "According
to the laptop, we're supposed to
go to a Mayors For Peace conference
back in Japan again…" he mumbled.
That was fine with everyone. "But…?"
they inquired, wondering what was
worrying Ahmed.
"Well
according to google-earth, we're
flying over the US," he told them.
"I
guess we're talking the long way
there … but this is fun. So it's
fine with me!" Johnny exclaimed.
"But
that sounds like it'll take a long
time," Erin sighed. "And I have
to be back home for an important
Fèis festival this afternoon. All
my relatives are coming to see me
dance."
"And
I do have a lot of homework I'm
supposed to be doing today," Jamal
sighed.
The Crane turned to look at them
and seemed to tell them not to worry.
That's when the Kids remembered
that no matter how many things they
did and saw on their Adventures,
when they got back home, only a
moment or two would have actually
passed in 'real-time.' The Peace
Crane winked, letting them know
to hold on, and suddenly they skyrocketed
faster and faster. The Kids squealed
with delight.
Then suddenly they slowed down and
began to descend a little so that
the Kids could get a good view of
the sights below.
"We're
over Independence, Missouri," Ahmed
informed them.
"Oh
look, there's another Sadako statue!"
Michiko called out, as the crane
swooped low enough for them to clearly
see.
"Yes,"
Ahmed said as he read from his screen.
"That's the United Nations Peace
Plaza down there, and a statue of
Sadako was dedicated in 1995 for
the 50th Anniversary of Hiroshima
Day."
They circled a few times and then
whooshed on their way once again.
When they slowed down a moment later,
Maya suddenly recognized where they
were. "Hey guys, we're in New Mexico!"
she exclaimed. "That's Santa Fe!"
Ahmed's laptop agreed. "We're about
to see a sister statue that some
grade-school kids in New Mexico
helped create … also for the 50th
Anniversary in 1995. These kids
were inspired by Sadako's story
and wanted to create a sister statue,
because New Mexico is the state
where the bomb that fell on Hiroshima
was built. They held a contest for
kids to design the statue, and they
got 90,000 children from all 50
US States and 63 countries to chip
in to help build the winning design."
"Um,
I think I might need glasses," José
said, "but does Sadako's 'sister'
look like her to you guys?"
Ahmed's laptop, of course, was able
to help clear up the confusion.
"The winning design," he told them,
"was a globe with Earth's continents
made of 3000 figurines of plants
and animals that were designed by
kids in more than 100 countries."
The Kids were impressed and marveled
at the intricate details of the
globe-statue. But then their crane-guide
gave them the nod to hold on, and
off they went at top cyber-speed.
In an another instant, the crane
set them down in a quiet, peaceful
garden. The Kids all turned to Ahmed
for their tour-guide information-update,
but before he could find anything
on his laptop, Ling started reading
from a plaque, set in stone. "This
is the Sadako Peace Garden at the
La Casa de Maria Retreat in Santa
Barbara," she read. "It was created
by the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
and La Casa de Maria, also for the
50th Anniversary of the atomic bombing
in Hiroshima," she told them.
The Kids sat back and sighed, enjoying
the quiet, peaceful setting for
a moment or two. Then the Peace
Crane let them know it was time
to set off on the next leg of their
trip.
"Uh,
it looks like the next stop is the
Seattle Peace Park," Ahmed called
over the roar of the wind as they
sped off. Sure enough, in a flash
they were in another peace garden,
gazing at a life-sized bronze statue
of Sadako with a thousand beautifully-colored
paper cranes draped over her shoulder.
When it was time to continue on
their journey, they noticed Ahmed
looked a bit worried. "What's up,
Ahmed?" they asked as they climbed
aboard the Crane.
"Well,
we're going to be crossing the Pacific
Ocean now …" he stammered.
That sounded like fun to the Kids.
"Yeah, but, according to the mapquest
route," Ahmed said slowly, "we're
not flying on this leg of the trip
…"
"How
else would we get there?" Sunanda
asked out-loud the question everyone
else was thinking.
"We
might want to hold our breaths!"
Ahmed warned as they plunged into
the ocean and dove under water.
Of course the Kids needn't have
worried. This was Cyberspace, after
all. The normal laws of the Universe
don't apply here, so the Kids didn't
have to worry about little things
like breathing underwater. Instead
they found themselves happily chatting
as they took in the many beautiful
sights and sounds on their 5000
mile trip beneath the Pacific Ocean.
Before they knew it, they had reached
the coast of Japan, and as the crane
rose from the water, they found
they were barely wet at all. They
shook off a few stray droplets of
water and noticed they were standing
in front of a large room-full of
important-looking men and women.
They were all staring at the Kids!
"Hey,"
that's my Mayor!" Johnny gasped
pointing at a woman three rows back.
"Mine's
here, too!" Erin said a moment later,
after spotting a familiar face off
to the left.
"And
here comes my Mayor," Michiko whispered
as the Mayor of Hiroshima walked
towards them.
"Welcome
back, Better World Kids," he said. "We are
so honored to have you join us,"
he added and bowed to them. They
shyly bowed back.
The Mayor of Hiroshima told the
kids that the mayors who had come
for their conference were only a
tiny number of the more than 5000
mayors in 155 countries who were
part of Mayors For Peace. Together
they were working to show international
support for the abolition of nuclear
weapons, and were cooperating to
establish "lasting world peace through
solving problems such as hunger
and poverty, refugees, human rights
and environmental protection."
"That
sounds wonderful," Michiko said
for all the Kids. "But what can
we do to help?"
The Mayor smiled. "Well, first,
we were hoping that you could sign
our petition for a nuclear-free
world by 2020."
The Kids were more than happy to
do so, and they all did so, right
then and there.
"We
were also hoping," the Mayor beamed,
"that you can tell other chapters
of Better World Kids Clubs to sign our petition
online. More than half a million
people already have!"
All of the Kids promised to tell
all of the Chapters about this wonderful
program. And everyone they knew,
too.
"I'm
also going to tell my Mayor about
Mayors For Peace," Sol said. "I
just know he'll want to join!"
"I
will, too!" Ahmed exclaimed.
"Me
three!" José added.
The Kids were really excited. The
adventures they loved most were
the ones that showed them things
that they could do to help. They
told the Mayor that they'd love
to stay and join them for their
Conference, but he pointed at the
Peace Crane and said, "We'd be honored,
but I think your friend is calling
you."
Sure enough, the Peace Crane was
silently signaling that their adventure
was nearly over. It was time for
her to return to her place with
Sadako. The Kids politely thanked
the Mayors, and in an instant were
whisked away on the crane's wings
back to the Peace Memorial Park.
It was pretty dark out and the Kids
knew their weekly meeting was about
to be over. They were really going
to miss their new friend. They hugged
the Crane and were a little teary
eyed as it floated back up into
the evening sky to rest above the
Sadako-statue's outstretched arms.
"Hey
look, she's waving goodbye," Ling
said. The crane had turned back
into part of the statue, completely
inanimate, except for her right
wing, which did indeed seem to be
waving.
"No
I think she's pointing not waving!"
Jamal said, and they all turned
to look past the A-Bomb Dome where
they could see lots of bouncing
lights.
The Crane flapped its wing faster
and faster and the Kids found themselves
swept up onto a gust that set them
down gently on the banks of the
Motoyasu River that ran alongside
the Park. There they saw thousands
of paper lanterns floating on the
water. "Oh, this is the Peace Lantern
Ceremony," Michiko exclaimed. "I've
always wanted to see this. Each
of those lanterns contains a message
of peace. Isn't it just beautiful!"
The Kids all agreed that it was.
"What
a wonderful way to end our adventure,"
Sunanda said as they started to
feel themselves fading.
"Thank
you so much for sharing your city's
story with us," Maya added and all
the Kids nodded in agreement as
they hugged each other goodbye.
"It's
such a sad story," Johnny sad, "We
learned some really heavy stuff
today, but it sure was a fun adventure…"
"And
I feel really hopeful…" Erin added.
"Yes,"
José agreed and everyone braced
themselves for one of his wisecracks.
"Because learning about Hiroshima
Day helps to inspire people to work
together to create a nuclear-free
world."
The Kids had been all ready to roll
their eyes and chide him that this
was no laughing matter. But, this
time José had exactly summed up
their feelings.
Ahmed tapped on his laptop, officially
concluding their Better World Kids Club
meeting, and the Kids were transported
back to their own homes, filled
with lots of memories and lots to
think about, until their next meeting.
FIND
OUT MORE ABOUT HIROSHIMA DAY:
BetterWorldCalenar.com/hiroshimaday.htm
VIRTUAL
TOUR OF PEACE MEMORIAL PARK:
www.pcf.city.hiroshima.jp/frame/Virtual_e/tour_e/guide1.html
FIND
OUT MORE ABOUT A NUCLEAR FREE WORLD
Abolition
2000 - Abolition2000.org
Mayors
For Peace - MayorsForPeace.org
Nuclear
Age Peace Foundation -
WagingPeace.org
Peace Education
Fund - PeaceEducationFund.org
SIGN
THE PETITION FOR A NUCLEAR-FREE
WORLD:
mayorsforpeace.org/english/campaign/projects/petition
