I have visited the Hiroshima memorial on a school excursion while I was in high school. I can still remember the absolute horror I felt upon seeing the aftermath of the A-bomb.
Before visiting the memorial this time, I was told by my Japanese friends that they have 'toned down' the exhibits.
Nonetheless, the effect of the new exhibits was quite the same. Visitors were silent as we walked through the exhibits. Some were quietly wiping their unstoppable tears.
I was especially struck by the remains of some personal effects of perished children. Most of these children were from the families that evacuated the big cities that were thought to be targeted by other bombs. Those children who 'survived' the bombing, somehow walked home almost unrecognizable, only to die a few days later in spite of their family's effort to take care of their irrevocable injuries. Knowing the agonizing process of death, you would think that they would have been better off had they died instantaneously. They wouldn't have had to endure such unimaginable suffering......
I couldn't help but think, if only they hadn't evacuated......
One thing I didn't know was that there were foreigners beside the Japanese who perished.
12 American soldiers and numerous Koreans, who were brought to Japan from Korea as forced laborers. There was an outdoor memorial erected for the Koreans.
Would they have been better off staying in Korea had they had a choice? They had no houses, businesses or work and possibly nothing to eat in Korea, but they may have somehow survived all that.....
One would be made to contemplate on unfairness of one's 'fate' at such a time as this.....
There is a peace arch, where the eternal flame is offered, in this Hiroshima Memorial Park. On the monument was this inscription.
"Sleep in peace. We will not repeat this mistake."
I could understand this as a 'prayer' but at the same time I wondered if we truly learned anything from this mistake and all the similar mistakes the humanity has made in history.
Sure, there has not been another atomic bomb dropped anywhere in the world for the past 70 years. But the wars have never ceased. The terrorists attacks, including 9/11, somehow continue to happen in different parts of the world. When will humanity ever learn from this mistake?
In front of the 'dome' were a few people who were sharing information with the foreigners. One young volunteer came to share some information with us. He was working side-by-side with another man whose mother is a survivor. His mother was pregnant with him when A-bomb happened. He is an in-utero survivor.
There is a short documentary (20 minutes) on Mr. Mito, his family and what happened THAT DAY. The film was produced by an American couple. It includes Mr. Mito's interview. It will give you a glimpse of the devastating effect of A-bomb. Watch That Day here.
Warning: Although the images are just a fraction of what you can see in the memorial museum, they may be too much for the faint hearted. Viewer discretion is advised.
Mr. Mito also has a blog if you are interested in reading more about his mother's memoirs and other informative articles on Hiroshima. Mr. Mito's blog
Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me~~~ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫
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