Southwest Japan high schoolers recite original poem about peace on anniv. of nuke treaty

KUMAMOTO -- High school students in Kumamoto Prefecture who collect signatures for a petition seeking the abolition of nuclear weapons recited a poem in this city on Jan. 22 about peace that one of them wrote, one year from the day that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) -- to which Japan is not a party -- went into effect.

The high schoolers argued that "atomic bombs were made by people, and were dropped on people. That's precisely why they can be eliminated through people's wills."

The author of the poem, "Heiwa no shi" -- literally "poem of peace" -- is Airi Katayama, a third-year student at Kumamoto Shin-Ai Girls' Senior High School. She, along with An Fukuhara, a second year student at Kyushu Gakuin Lutheran High School, and others, have called on people to sign their petition on the streets of the city of Kumamoto, and listened to the experiences of Nagasaki A-bomb survivors. Katayama wrote the poem with the advice of fellow campaigners with the hope of passing down the importance of peace.

"People are forgetful and weak, which is why we repeat mistakes. But this is one thing we must not forget," she said. "And that will is unmistakably born inside every one of us."

(Japanese original by Takehiro Higuchi, Kumamoto Bureau)

***

"Poem of Peace"

Peace

A serene state in which there is no fighting or strife

A tranquil condition in which there are no worries or conflict

I now live in peace

My heart dances when I see the beauty of a rainbow across the big sky

My heart relaxes when a drop of the vast ocean wets my foot

My heart melts when I smell the scent of a flower out of nowhere, and illuminated by the moon, I feel the sparse shadows of the trees

It is a peaceful day that I can surrender myself to such nature

The moment that I hear a voice guiding me

I want you to look back on whether you lived that day to its fullest

I want you to remember not to take this time for granted

I want you not to forget about them, about the truth

Seventy-six years ago

All the nature that I loved changed into something else

The big sky and the stars that excited me disappeared into fighter jets and bombs

The vast ocean that moistened my feet was dyed with human blood

The landscape that once soothed my sense of smell and vision became cloudy with the stench of death and changed into a sight of corpses heaped on top of each other

A blast, a heat ray, and the fires that those caused

In one moment, took out

The lights of the precious lives of many

They were all living quiet and peaceful lives, no differently from me

They were living every day single-heartedly and earnestly

They had great expectations for their futures

They treasured their families and friends, cherished nature, and were weaving the threads of their lives

But in the blink of an eye, all that was taken away, destroyed

Just because some are born in a different time, in a different country

Just because of that small difference, they are embroiled in war

They are forced to confront the fear that they may die at any moment, and the pain of losing family

For us, peace is

Vague and difficult to visualize

That's why it's hard to think about peace

But just like it's easy to be grateful for our health

When we catch a cold or suffer an injury

Knowing war can help us see peace

"What is war?" "Who and how are weapons bought and sold?"

"Why does war happen?"

We can use war to talk about a lot of things

If we think not only about what lies just before us, but about today's children, and the children of those children

We start to think not only in terms of country, but in terms of the world

The word peace often comes with words like

"Wish" and "pray"

But I want you to know

Peace is not something you simply wish for, but create

People are forgetful and weak

Which is why we repeat mistakes

But

This is one thing we must not forget

This is one thing we must not repeat

No matter what happens

You must not let this happen not only to yourself

But to anyone else in this world

Atomic bombs were made by people

And were dropped on people

That's precisely why they can be eliminated through people's wills

And that will is unmistakably born

Inside every one of us

I vow

That to stop any more deaths from war or nuclear weapons

And for the sake of children and their children

And people whose physical and mental pain have not been healed

That we will never tolerate war or nuclear weapons

That we will pray together for peace regardless of race

That we will act upon hearing the voices of A-bomb survivors

That we will through our activities, pass down the stories to future generations

That we will not capitulate to obstacles that may stand in the way of nuclear abolition

That we will give our all toward realizing a peaceful world

Our efforts may be humble but are not powerless

These words are what motivate us

And allow us to continue to press ahead, one step at a time from Kumamoto