Hiroshima –sparrow- is a story about “Uncle Sparrow” who comes to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park every morning to feed the sparrows. He says that it’s his way of atonement for what he did to the sparrows when he was a boy. Uncle Sparrow was orphaned at the age of 10 on August 6th 1945, the day of the Atomic bombing. He lost his father and sister. And his mother has been missing since that time. 
 
He was taken care of by his relatives, but everyone was poor and starved. In order to survive, they netted sparrows in the mountains for food, and he had various jobs to help get by. He managed to graduate from high school during the chaotic post-war period. As an orphan he endured hardships and life struggles that continued into his adult life.
 
One day, 60 years later, Uncle Sparrow was at his sister’s tomb praying for her, and a bunch of sparrows came up to him. So, he fed them. Then another day he was at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, and the same thing happened. He found comfort and redemption in the interaction with the sparrows. Since then, coming to this park to feed the sparrows became his daily routine. That is how he was nicknamed “Uncle Sparrow”.
 
He cites famous Issa Kobayashi’s haiku:
“Come with me to play A poor sparrow without parents”
 
 
 
 

１９４５年８月６日８時１５分、広島に一発の原子爆弾が落とされました。 原爆ドームの対岸のベンチから遠くを見つめるひとりのおじさん。原爆孤児となり戦後の広島を生き抜いてきたおじさんの記憶はずっと心の奥にしまってありました。「あそこに姉さんがいたんじゃ・・・母さんはまだ行方不明なんよ」そして、手のひらに集まるたくさんのすずめに話しかけます、「あんときゃ、悪かったのう」。ある日、おじさんは１０歳の少年に戻ったように、ぽつりぽつりと当時の事を話してくれました。原爆は「広島・長崎の出来事」ではなく、今を生きる自分にかかわる事として、世界中の若者に知ってほしい事です。そのためにも、核兵器廃絶へ向けていつか日本が平和学習の世界のリーダーになるよう、誰もが学んでほしいのです。