DECEMBER 7: A DATE THAT WILL LIVE IN INFAMY

'Home Sweet Home', Winslow Homer,  National Gallery of Art

For more information: http://www.nga.gov/feature/homer/homer03.htm

One of the most memorable experiences my family has had was when my son played with the high school band at Pearl Harbor. World War II vets from the US and Japan stood at attention, caps removed, saluting as the band played, "Taps" and "The Star Spangled Banner" near the USS Arizona. Reflective silence followed the moving musical performance.

The painting by Winslow Homer, created during the Civil War years, captures a similar moment of reflection. Confederate and Union soldiers pause and listen to the song, "Home Sweet Home", played by military bands. In the evening on a battlefield, it was common to hear the bands play songs that marked the end of the day. The song, "Taps", was first played on Civil War battlefields to signify The Extinguishing the Lights Ceremonies.

President Roosevelt was correct when he stated December 7th is,"a date that will live in infamy". But, what have we learned since 1941? I had a dear friend who was forced to serve in the Nazi Cavalry. We talked about his military service and we discussed the current headlines of the war in the Middle East.  Max would shake his head and ask," When would we all learn about war?"

As teachers, we discuss point of view in our classes and celebrate the opposite of war - peace. Derek Stancombe from Great Britain created a graphic video of how to make an origami peace crane. My students make the cranes to celebrate peaceful spirits, give as gifts to soldiers, and send the the Children's Peace Park at Hiroshima.  Here is the link to share.

In Japan, the Zojo-ji Temple in central Tokyo has a beautiful gate built in 1622. The name,of the gate is, Sangedatsumon, which means," the gate delivering from the three earthly states of man:  greed, anger and stupidity". Amazingly, this  gate survived the fire storms of WWII. On December 7th, let's think of all wars, all points of view and imagine peaceful world.

-Jo-Anne Kirkman

P.S. Please see video of Pearl Harbor. Additionally, something to think about... I did not see any memorials in Japan honoring Japanese soldiers who fought and died in WWII.