August 6, 2015
Your Personal “Hiroshima”
We all have metaphorically had a “Hiroshima Experience” of a personal trauma, pain, loss, abandonment, rejection, illness or accident, all of which can led to more pain through addictions, violence, depression, hopelessness, suicide and so on.
This week is the 70th anniversary of the Atomic Bomb being dropped on Hiroshima, and three days later another on Nagasaki. I was involved in creating a commemoration of this horrific event, and a celebration of peace by way of the Floating Lantern Festival in Calgary at sunset on August 6, 2015. This whole event has really gotten me thinking.
In all our lives we suffer from terrible pain, loss and tragedy of one kind or another. The people of Japan suffered an enormous loss. Here are the words of the Mayor of Hiroshima 70 years after the terrible event in a Peace Declaration:
“In our town, we had the warmth of family life, the deep human bonds of community, festivals heralding each season, traditional culture and buildings passed down through history, as well as riversides where children played. At 8:15 a.m., August 6, 1945, all of that was destroyed by a single atomic bomb. Below the mushroom cloud, a charred mother and child embraced, countless corpses floated in rivers, and buildings burned to the ground. Tens of thousands were burned in those flames. By year’s end, 140,000 irreplaceable lives had been taken, that number including Koreans, Chinese, Southeast Asians, and American prisoners of war.”
Those who managed to survive, their lives grotesquely distorted, were left to suffer serious physical and emotional aftereffects compounded by discrimination and prejudice. Children stole or fought routinely to survive. A young boy rendered an A-bomb orphan still lives alone; a wife was divorced when her exposure was discovered. The suffering continues.
Japan, Chugoku Region, Hiroshima, Atomic explosion on 6th August, 1945
No matter the degree of loss, pain or trauma, life goes on, and peace is still possible. More than ever it is important to do the hard work of healing our personal “Hiroshimas”, so that we can be at peace inside our own hearts and souls. Until then, peace in our homes, cities, countries and the world will not be possible.
Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the problems in the world and wonder what I can possible do to help. Well, do your own healing work Judy! Get grounded in healthy communities, good habits, and surround yourself with healthy joyful people. Get professional help, spiritual guidance and get your healing show on the road! Only then can you go out into the world to help others create peace in their families, cities and countries.
There, I’m done ranting. Whew! I’m off to eat a healthy breakfast, go for a brisk walk and lead a drum circle for 70 international students. What are doing today for peace, inside you, and in the world? Hmmmm….
Yours in Service of Peace,
Judy Atkinson
Founder Circles of Rhythm
ww.circlesofrhythm.com