Michiko
was very excited about this
week's meeting of the Better World Team. 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 Team 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 Team 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 Team 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!"
"We'd
better take a seat,"
Ahmed said pointing to a bunch
of empty chairs. "It
looks like they're about to
start."
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 Team
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
354 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.
"Nukes
are nuts!" José declared.
The
Kids all agreed that José
was absolutely right.
"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
warLing…" 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 coLing 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 Teams 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 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 began typing on his
laptop, ready to conclude
the weekly Better World Kids
Team meeting, when he saw
some exciting information
pop up. "Hey look guys, he
exclaimed. "There are also
some other amazing dates that
the UN has set up to get people
aware of the need to abolish
nuclear weapons."
The
Kids peeked over his shoulder.
"The
International Day Against
Nuclear Tests on August 29
was first observed in 2010,"
Maya read.
Sunanda
pointed out a line in the
UN resolution that they all
really agreed on as an important
first step to create a nuclear
free world: "…the end of nuclear
tests is one of the key means
of achieving the goal of a
nuclear-weapon-free world."
Then
the laptop showed them a different
site. "Whoa, look at that!"
Johnny said, pointing excitedly.
"The United Nations also declared
September 26 as the International
Day for the Total Elimination
of Nuclear Weapons as a way
to focus on 'initiatives
and actions for the achievement
of a nuclear weapons free
world...'"
Now
The Kids felt really hopeful
as they found themselves magically
transported back to their
own homes, filled with lots
of memories and lots to think
about, until their next meeting.
