We spent a day in Hiroshima, ground zero for the first atomic bomb used in warfare.  Estimates of deaths in the first week range from 40,000 to 93,000.  (Imagine that the RANGE of the estimate is more than 15 times our 9/11 loss to get a sense).  A total of 292,000 are thought to have died if you include the latent effects of radioactivity.  For decades, those who survived kept their stories to themselves.  Young women were particularly concerned that no one would marry them, parents worried that all of their children would be rejected as radioactive. Others just couldn’t stand to talk because they felt “guilty” for having survived.

We were fortunate to spend the day with Keiko Ogura, who was 8 years old when she survived the blast.  Her husband was the curator of the Hiroshima Peace Museum and worked to get survivors to speak out, lest their stories die with them in old age.  When he died in 1984, Keiko decided to take up his mission, and learned English.  Her story is hard to fathom, but she told it with little emotion as we toured the target zone.  The most traumatic memory for her was when she learned that the water she gave to survivors the day of the blast caused a chemical reaction in those with severe radiation poisoning – killing them quickly.  She didn’t openly “confess” this until 1984.

The museum was well done, but hearing Keiko’s story and watching the videos of the survivors telling their stories was the most moving part of the day.  No funny videos from me today.