Saturday, June 27, with Perry

After the dance recital, we went to the Atomic Bomb Museum. Perry went through it twice in one day: Once on his own, and once with me. It must have been hard to go through it alone, yet I think it's something that must be done alone. But knowing there are familiar people nearby sharing the same experience is comforting.

On his second tour, we went with a couple other people, including an 11 year old. Even she stayed as long as she could. She said the most important part for her was listening to the survivors of those who were exposed to radiation. They had interviews of Americans who were exposed to radiation during the Cold War too.

I don't know if the second time around was just as difficult for Perry. He is not great at expressing his thoughts and feelings with me. But it was something, I think, that he was still processing. He did say the science and technology exhibits were most important to him.

It is interesting that in America we feel the need to protect children from historic violence. They never grow up fully understanding the full depth and effects of real violence. We don't read narratives of survivors of WWI and II or the Vietnam War (aside from The Things They Carried, which is usually read in 11th grade). We say it is too scary for them. Their first and closest exposure comes from the joy and satisfaction of graphically violent video games. Globally, the US, for other reasons as well, has a shocking amount of violent crime.

In Japan, students are exposed to the historical trauma of war at very young ages. We saw many elementary and middle school age students at the museums. My Japanese friend, at a workshop I co-lead on peace education, told us that she was five years old when she went to an atomic bomb museum for the first time. Japan, for other reasons as well, has one on the lowest crime rates and they play the same video games our children play.

But Japan is a very different place compared to the US. It is not so simple. One of the biggest challenges I faced the first time I visited was all the questions. To Japan, peace is a way of life. To the US, it is an old and impossible fantasy.

I think it will be a while until Perry is able to fully communicate his ideas and response.