The Story of One Thousand Cranes

Hi everyone,

A few weeks ago, my son Tom and I went to the wonderful Pollocks Toy Museum in London - a little bit tricky to find but well worth the effort. I can't find a current website for them, but they're at 1 Scala Street, London W1T 2HL.


The Museum is actually two old houses which are joined together and it is just stuffed full of toys and games from the 18C right through to some I remember from my own childhood. We could have spent hours there and thought it great value for the £6 entry fee.

One exhibit we found particularly touching - this little book with a collection of origami cranes made by children in hospital in Hiroshima ...


This reminded me of the story of Sadako Sasaki, a little girl who was just two when she survived the atomic bomb, only to develop leukaemia some years later. Sadly, Sadako's wish did not come true and she lost her battle against the disease, but she remains an inspiration to future generations and the crane has become a symbol of peace.

This video shows Steve Simon telling the story as he creates a beautiful painting to illustrate it ...


It must take a lot of dedication to make a thousand cranes. I may just give it a go - another good use for some of those scrappy leftovers and I'd have plenty of time to decide what my wish should be.

Here's one of the many tutorials available on YouTube if you would like to have a go ...


Thanks for visiting today, see you again soon.

Annie x

Comments

Lizzy Hill said…
See, this is one of the reasons I love London - another hidden treasure-& that book was VERY moving... Now THERES a challenge !!!!!!