Pearl Harbor--Last Thoughts

There are events in every generation that define them. People in my generation have grown up with Pearl Harbor as much a part of our history as the Great Depression was for our parents and grandparents, and 9/11 will be for my children and grandchildren. While we didn't live through it, it was so closely tied into our past, it was as if we did.

Visiting Pearl Harbor has been on my Bucket List for a long time. It did not disappoint. Through viewing the displays, the political climate around the world became clearer, describing the Japanese expansionist program, and the reason for the Isolationist attitude of the United States. Between the photographs, visiting the Arizona, and watching the videos, two impressions stand-out.

1) The most poignant moments were hearing the voices of those who were there and survived. Nurses at the hospital, children, soldiers, regular citizens; people who watched the planes flying low overhead, and heard the bombs drop.

One of the most startling images was this photo of children in gas masks. It is a haunting image and I was really taken aback.

The quote that accompanied the photo: "Life after the attack--We carried gas masks in our arms and wore hibiscus in our hair."

As I looked at the photo, my first thought was 'How awful!' But it was a war-time reality. It made me think about all the times that children have had to cope with extreme dangers. I hate the fact that my grandchildren live in a time when they need to be taught how to react in an Active Shooter situation. This photo reminds me that children, all through time, have had to cope with terrible situations. Children in England were sent by their families in London to live with strangers in the country, so they'd be safe from WWII bombs. Hitler's Youth were used to search the ghetto basements for abandoned babies when Jews were moved out. These are just a couple of examples of real life.

As adults we've always taught children to beware. Centuries ago, parents used stories like Little Red Riding Hood to teach Stranger Danger. Teaching children how to protect themselves may be scary for them, but it also empowers them. It is through the love and guidance of nurturing adults that most children survive terrible events and grow up relatively unscathed, even as they carry nightmares of bombs falling.

2) Pearl Harbor is a wonderful memorial, but it is when you visit the Arizona, that the impact hits home. Standing in the memorial, looking at the ship below, seeing fuel slowly bubble up to the surface, looking at the names on the wall; it is sobering.

I have had the privilege of visiting a few Sacred Sites in my life. The first one was in Germany when we visited Dachau, the concentration camp. The second one was the empty pit of the Twin Towers in New York. Pearl Harbor was the third. At each site, people walked in expectantly, curious about what they would find. At each site, people left in silence, overwhelmed by the inherent understanding of the loss of life, the sadness of war, the ultimate sacrifice, regardless of whether the victims had signed up for duty or simply been a victim of an ideology.

There was something else that I saw. Beautiful displays of Origami Paper Cranes.

The Japanese legend of 1000 paper cranes promises that whoever folds 1000 paper cranes will have their wish.

Sadako Sasaki with her parents, before she became ill.

Sadako Sasaki was a young girl who developed leukemia following the atomic bomb at Hiroshima. Sadako pledged to make 1,000 origami cranes before she died. Her wish? To live. She didn't. But her family carried her memory forward. Today the crane lives on as a symbol of world peace, and appears at sites where terrorism has taken lives. They are a sign of hope in the midst of tragedy.

From Dachau to Pearl Harbor, The canes remind us that war is sad, futile, evil, and should be vigorously avoided. But when it's inevitable, we have an honor and a duty to stand for those who can't stand for themselves. Pearl Harbor left me contemplating so much about America's place in the world, about the sadness, the futility of war, and about the dignity of life.

Most of all, it reminded me that, while we must never forget our history--both the good and the bad parts--we use the past to learn the lessons for the future, to remember the heroes, the survivors, and how we were able to grow beyond our tears.

The Tree of Life created for Pearl Harbor

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends"

NOTE: This blog post is delayed. I always write first, then wait and edit later. Generally, I don't think well 'on my feet'. I like to double check my words as well as my spelling! Anyway, I wrote this shortly after the first Oklahoma tornado. I've had a busy couple of weeks and am just getting back to my blog. I've re-read it and I feel that although it is delayed, it is still relevant, especially as storms wrack our countries interior and hurricane season begins in the south.  As we hear stories of protection, may we always remember that "greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends". John 15:13 

 

It's happened again. Another tragedy, this time from Mother Nature, has hit a community. Unfortunately, school was in session and 2 schools took direct hits. 7 children died.

Horrible.

Heartbreaking.

Awful.

Really? Are there words that equate to the feelings we feel as we hear the news?

Not in my vocabulary.

When I first heard the news about the tornado that ripped apart Moore, Oklahoma I checked the time and hoped that school had been dismissed. But it hadn't. Photos later showed the school buses lined up ready to load those children and deliver them home.

Often schools are a safe haven; a place that can be locked down or secured. But they are also a place where hundreds of children are targets if that place is the target of a direct hit. What if they had been on the buses? How many would have been lost then? The sad reality is losing 7 children (or 9) may have been a true blessing. What if all those buses had been on the road when that tornado hit? How many would have been lost then?

Sorry. I'm rambling now. "What if's" are usually irrelevant questions. They are vehicles to divert our attention from reality to possibility.

Here is my reality. This tragedy is hitting home for me, because I was a teacher. I remember the annual tornado drills that we did on April 1st, (or maybe March 1st?) the designated beginning of Tornado season.

As I listen to the news reports I find myself repeatedly tearing up as I hear teachers recount their experiences. Last winter we heard the horrific account of a gunman on a rampage in an elementary school in Sandy Hook. That story hit home for me as I listened to the ways teachers tried to protect their students. I could relate on one level. But this story is a little different. I have visions of tornado drills with students crouched on the floor, covering their heads in a protective position, waiting "interminably" for the final call from the office that the 'threat' had passed and we could get up.

The children in Oklahoma never heard that. They heard a roaring noise, crashing sounds, pitch black, and teachers yelling "IT'S ALMOST OVER! IT'S ALMOST OVER!" at the top of their lungs as they crouched OVER their students.

Recently I saw a photo of a bird with it's wings spread out protectively over it's babies. It's a beautiful picture. And in the midst of that raging black turmoil, those teachers would have displayed an equally protective vision.

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

Your child's teacher may have never displayed this amount of caring for his or her's class. Pray he or she NEVER has too. But know in your heart, that most of them will do whatever is necessary to protect and calm your child should an emergency ever arrive.

I love teachers. They are among today's heroes, because, in front of TEACHING your child, Protecting your child will always be first on their list.