by Eva van Loon

History’s most terrible incident of war, the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, happened over sixty years ago. The survivors, as they near the ends of their lives, caution us never to forget, and to teach our children to remember. Thus it seems especially poignant to receive in one of this year’s peace-poem-competition packets a translation of a poem by a Japanese international student in Grade 11 at Brooks School, Megumi Oketani:

Haywa

 “Haywa” is peace in Japanese
We swore peace after atomic bombs were released
Our future is babies
We smile more after the fighting ceased
 
Open a window in my mind
Your love will always bring a smile to my face
People’s happiness comes around like the wind
Under the same sky, joy will not be erased
 
Our minds must stay as open as the sky
Above Earth’s troubles, we should remain
Do not let the darkness fill our eyes
We cannot be consumed with pain
 
Our mother is the Earth
We are held as babies in their mothers’ arms
It is warm like a hearth
Even during a disturbance, stay calm
 
Hopefully, I can attain my good feeling
To bring peace in this world, we will be at ease
Unconsciously, we always seek healing
Yes, for Haywa and peace

There is much wisdom in Megumi’s words: reverence for the planet that bears us like a mother, the refusal to be overwhelmed by pain, sorrow or revenge, the focus on smiling, on children, on healing. Like Megumi, many of our young poets seem to have recovered the lost key to that “locked box” of peace. The anthology is dedicated to them, and to their future. For Haywa, and for peace.