Hiroshima Children's Peace Monument, Sadako Sasaki's story

67 years ago, Sadako Sasaki was two years old when she survived the atomic blast, although she was blown out of the window of her home from Hiroshima. However, 9 years later she became ill with leukemia because of the exposure to radiations… While in hospital, a friend folded for her an origami crane from a golden piece of paper and, according to a traditional belief that the cranes will grant an important wish to any person who will fold 1000 origami cranes (Senbazuru), Sadako started folding cranes, wishing simply to live…

It is said that she made only 644 cranes until she became too ill to fold… After her death, her friends completed the 1000 origami and she was buried with them. She was only 12 years old. Afterwards, her friends and school colleagues raised funds for a monument dedicated to all the children who died because of the atomic bomb and with the help of 3,100 schools from Japan and from 9 other countries, the Children’s Peace Monument from Hiroshima was inaugurated in 1958 on May 5th, on the Children’s Day celebration.

But more impressive than the monument itself is what happened afterwards: people from all over the world started visiting the monument, leaving paper cranes with the wish for world peace. Today, the glass boxes you can see around the monument are filled with paper cranes folded by people all around the world…

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Children’s Peace Monument, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Hiroshima

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Asakusa Walk of Fame, Stars Plaza