Dear friends,
My very first lesson in peace came from a 12-year-old Japanese schoolgirl I never met.
Chances are, yours did too.
Sadako Sasaki loved to run. She practiced whenever she could in the hopes she’d qualify for the junior high school track team.
One day, she collapsed at school.
A trip to the doctor quickly revealed that Sadako had leukaemia - a diagnosis common in her hometown of Hiroshima since it was bombed ten years earlier, in 1945.
A friend shared a proverb with her as she processed the news. Legend said that if a person folded one thousand paper cranes, the gods would grant them a wish.
Friends and family offered whatever paper they had as Sadako folded and folded. A novelisation of her life would say she fell short of her goal and folded only 644 cranes.
But the truth is far more interesting. Sadako didn’t just meet her goal - she exceeded it. By the time she died, surrounded by her loving family, she had folded over 1,300 paper cranes.
After her death, her classmates published her letters and raised funds to erect a memorial in her honour. Soon, all of Japan knew her story. In 1958, a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane was unveiled in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park with a simple message engraved into the plaque:
’This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace in the world.’
When we read the novelisation of Sadako’s life in primary school, I felt an overwhelming sadness. She folded her cranes and didn’t get her wish. Now, I remember the story not for its tragedy, but its impact.
The truth is - Sadako Sasaki changed the world. She taught us to look for the unseen consequences of our actions, what community looks like, and what it means to survive conflict and hope for peace.
I find myself thinking about her as we prepare to host the tenth International Day of the Girl breakfast celebration in Naarm next month, in collaboration with Plan International Australia.
Hosted by our very own Jamila Rizvi and musician, actress and author Clare Bowditch, we’re sharing stories, songs and our hopes for the future. Most importantly, with the support of Witchery, we’re celebrating girls like Sadako - who have the power to bring about real, substantial change around the world.
An incredible lineup of speakers will join Jam and Clare - all well-versed in facing pressure at a young age and pushing for a better future - like AFLW superstar Darcy Vescio.
I can’t wait to tell you who we’re hearing from next, but for now I will have to leave you in suspense. Tickets are already moving quickly, and you can secure yours here.
At a time when we could all believe positive change is around the corner, I can’t wait to get together with my friends and celebrate the will of young women, like Sadako.
Hope to see you there,
Bojana Kos
Senior Content Producer, Future Women
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