• Today, an old lady came into our school, telling us a tale about world war II.
    I wasn't surprised because we do this every year. But I've never really payed attention what was trully going on untill I was 4th grade. Till that day, I've never opened up to myself.

    We sat in the gym, me and 600 other kids, waiting till the principle silenced us down. He introduced the lady, and led her to the table where she is supposed to sit. The lady made her way to the table, and sat quietly. We waited patiently for the lady to start her tale. She coughed a little, and began her story.

    Explosions. People screaming. Corpses. Blood.
    Unlike the bomb in Hiroshima or Nagasaki, Okinawa may have been one of the deadliest places in Japan.
    Chiyo had seen it all.
    She was 18 years old when the war started, and she became a nurse, treating the soldier's injuries.
    She had to say goodbye to her lover, Daichi, who had to participate in the war. And Chiyo knew that she would never go back to Daichi's arms again.
    The *hospital*, where Chiyo worked was in underground. Even though it was underground, It was never safe around the hospital.

    There was no such thing as clean. Everything was dirty and bloody...Alive or dead. No where to hide, no where to run either. The ocean that was once blue turned blood red, corpses floating everywhere you see. You look closely and you see maggots all over the wounds...

    Chiyo's 1st patient was a soldier that lost its arms. Even though he couldn't live much longer, Chiyo gave her best to save the soldier. A moment before he died, he said *Thank you, miss. But my wife is calling for me. I have to come to her...* And he never spoke a word again.
    She started giving up when she saw more people dying and begging for water. There was no more water for anyone to drink. Everyone is suffering, even herself.

    The last soldier that she treated...He was blind, and a bullet shot through the heart and maggots were picking on his wounds already. He was a selfish soldier, he wanted to be treated faster and have better treatment than any other soldiers in the room. Chiyo didn't like that additude at all. Before he died, he looked at Chiyo and said *I know your voice. I've heard it before... Is that...Chiyo?* Chiyo felt something warm on her cheeks. *Yes, its Chiyo... Daichi...Is it really you...?* The man smiled weakly. *Yes, its Daichi...Chiyo...I'll always...be...with...you...* Daichi closed his eyes. Chiyo hugged the corpse, ignoring his foul smell and blood and maggots, Chiyo cried and cried...

    She gave up all of her hope. She couldn't do anything anymore because her lover had went on without her.

    3 months later, the war ended. She had survived for 3 months by scavenging dead meats from animals and humans, drinking bloody water. She came back to her neighborhood where she grew up, but there was nothing left exept corpses and smokes. Suddenly she heard a small, faint moaning. Someone was still alive! She followed the faint voice, and discovered that it was a little boy who was buring his parents. She came up to him slowly. The little boy looked frightened. She saw fear in his eyes. Since his parents died, he had no one to trust. Chiyo hugged him softly. The boy looked like Daichi when he was little.

    *I started taking care of him, and lived with him. I treated him like my own son. But unfortunately he had passed away 2 years ago. He was a bright young man. A car accident killed him. But I will not give up hope now. I'm still alive, and that is the best thing that special people give it to me. Now, you all may go back to your classrooms and think about what I just said. You kids have a great day.*
    The lady bowed down graciously while a round of applause was given to her.

    That night, I thought about what happened today in bed. I felt bad for both sides, and everyone has a diffrent story of their own. Because i'm a japanese american, and i'm in both sides of the war. But past was the past. Its good to let go of your past and let people know what happened. But I was also afraid that people would look at me diffrently.

    Oh well. I'm unique. No one can control my actions. With confidence, I dreamed about japanese and americans getting along together.