Contributions from people overseas who are sharing the message of Hiroshima

(23)Floating lanterns reflect wishes for peace by Junko Marura

The city of Rochester is located approximately 150 kilometers southeast of St. Paul, the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota, which is famous for lakes and mountains. Rochester is surrounded by corn fields and has a population of 100,000 people. In the center of town are modern high-rise buildings, but a few blocks to the north is Silver Lake Park and its green trees.

Silver Lake Park provides a lovely spot for residents to relax. A variety of events are held in the park, such as a fireworks display for Independence Day on July 4th and a peace ceremony with floating lanterns in early August.

Participants carry their lanterns to the lake as drums play in the background.

Junko Maruta

Born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. She moved to the United States in 1972 and serves as a member of the "Mayor's International Affairs Committee" of Rochester, Minnesota.

This peace ceremony was initiated in 1985 by a peace activist named Lucille Kuhl. Ms. Kuhl is a modest woman who told me she had been inspired by a book she read about the floating lanterns of Hiroshima. The ceremony was subsequently adopted by priests and nuns of the Franciscan order as part of their spiritual practice. Then, in 1995, for the 50th anniversary of the bombing, I was asked to take over as coordinator of this activity.

As a Japanese citizen from the only country in the world to have suffered an atomic bomb attack, I felt a keen sense of responsibility to plan well for the event and I was able to receive support from a Japanese couple who was in Rochester at that time.

We prepared materials to make 200 lanterns and organized a display of photographs of A-bomb survivors. The late Mayor of Nagasaki, Iccho Ito, who was elected that year, kindly sent us a message of support. We also invited the Mayor of Rochester and other local dignitaries to attend, enlisted a singer to perform (a woman we knew), and publicized the event among the churches and citizens groups.

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With more attention from the media than expected, the event took on a larger life. In addition to the Franciscan nuns, support now came from the city government and peace groups. In the 12 years since, we have devised a variety of ideas to develop the event further, including video presentations about the atomic bombings, followed by discussions, and A-bomb poetry readings.

Last summer, the event was considered a "Memorial Ceremony for the late Mayor Ito." As speakers, we invited the Mayor of Rochester, a journalist, and a medical student. About 200 people attended the event and listened intently to the speakers' calls for the abolishment of nuclear weapons and a lasting peace in the world. At the end of the ceremony, participants set their handmade lanterns on the lake to the accompaniment of music played by Native Americans.

It was a cloudy day, unfortunately, so we weren't able to enjoy the sunset, but hundreds of lovely lanterns reflected their light on the surface of the water with their wishes for peace.