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08/26/2006: "Peace symbols..."

"Peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process, gradually changing opinions,
slowly eroding old barriers, quietly building new structures."

This turned out nice...I took a metal pole, painted it purple and then hung pictures of peace symbols on it. I have the dove, hand sign, peace sign and chinese symbol. Helps the kids to understand it is a "world" concept.

Another symbol are paper cranes. The paper crane has become an international symbol of peace in recent years as a result of it's connection to the story of a young Japanese girl named Sadako Sasaki born in 1943. Sadako was two years old when the atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan on August 6, 1945. As she grew up, Sadako was a strong, courageous and athletic girl. In 1955, at age 11, while practicing for a big race, she became dizzy and fell to the ground. Sadako was diagnosed with Leukemia, "the atom bomb" disease. Sadako's best friend told her of an old Japanese legend which said that anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes would be granted a wish. Sadako hoped that the gods would grant her a wish to get well so that she could run again. She started to work on the paper cranes and completed over 1000 before dying on October 25, 1955 at the age of twelve. In 1958, a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane was unveiled in Hiroshima Peace Park. The children also made a wish which is inscribed at the bottom of the statue and reads:
"This is our cry, This is our prayer, Peace in the world".

Replies: 1 Comment

Very cool! I think you did a great job! The ideas that you teach them are the things they walk away with later in life... someday one or all of them will remember the peace wall that Ms. DiSanto taught them about. Great job! And I like your hanging cranes! They came out great!

Erin said on Saturday, August 26th @ 10 :57 PM CST