Unique Serving Platter

Many stories of hope come from the horror of war. The dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945 ushered in a new age of nuclear weapons. The bomb had a devastating effect on the citizens of the Japanese city. A Peace Memorial Park was made to honor the dead and to offer a space to pray for peace. Many of the victims were children, as a direct result of the blast or from illnesses caused by radiation poisoning. The Park contains a Children’s Peace Memorial in memory of them. One child has been an inspiration to the world and has been adopted as a symbol for the peace movement. Her name was Sadako Sasaki and she is famous for the Sadako Paper Cranes.

Sadako was just two years old when the bomb fell and she died from leukemia when she was twelve years old. She was familiar with the symbolism of longevity and happiness of origami cranes and she proceeded to fold them whilst she was in hospital, hoping to reach the target of 1,000. Her hope was that she could overcome her illness and save humanity from further war. She folded hundreds of them, but couldn’t reach the target. Today, there are always millions of Sadako Paper Cranes placed around the Park Memorial.

In 1958, Sadako was honored when a statue of her holding a golden crane was erected on top of the Children’s Peace Memorial. The Memorial receives thousands of visitors every year and everyone is profoundly moved by the story of the Sadako Paper Cranes. There is also a statue in dedication to Sadako and other child victims of war in the Seattle Peace Park.

Thanks to Sadako, an old Japanese legend has spread throughout the world and the Sadako Paper Cranes have become a tangible tribute to war’s innocent victims. An Eternal Flame burns at the cenotaph in the Hiroshima Peace Park. The flame will be extinguished when the final atomic weapon on earth has been destroyed. The Sadako Paper Cranes are a very simple idea, a universal way of focusing people’s attention on an event. Sadako’s dream of bringing peace to the world has not yet been realized, but she did achieve a means of bringing people together with one goal in mind. For some Japanese people, the cranes have become just as significant as cherry blossom, the annual event that represents new life and hope into the hearts of the Japanese, young and old.

There is one thing in my house that I always forget to clean and by the time I notice it, it has gotten pretty nasty. Thankfully, I’m not talking about anything that you would think to look at much of the time and perhaps the reason it gets missed is because it is not something anyone pays any attention to. I often notice it when I am lying in bed and that is because that is when I can see it. I notice that the light cover over the overhead light is looking a little dull and there may even be a few dead insects in there.

If you don’t have an open light cover, you probably don’t have to worry about the dead insects and it will probably only need to be cleaned on the outside. Many of them are open and as we all know, bugs are attracted to light. Sometimes they die up there and you can see vague brown or black shadows through the light cover. Top this off with the dust that can accumulate and you have something that will drive you nuts until you clean it.

The problem with cleaning a light cover is getting to it. If you have high ceilings, you may even have to get a stepladder to get to it. I have broken more than one light cover trying to take it down and clean it. I don’t look forward to doing it. In fact, they all look like they could use a good cleaning right now. Make sure you have a steady perch when you have to climb up to take it down for cleaning, or you may end up dropping it. Every time I have dropped one it was because I lost balance and had to either catch myself or save the cover. I don’t really want a broken leg, so the cover was dropped every time.

For the most part, a simple glass cleaner will clean up a light cover just fine and you may find that is all you need for the ones on your car as well. Don’t forget that you need to clean them on occasion so you can see at night. If you find that the dust seems to have formed into a thick layer that won’t easily come off, you may have to soak them to get them clean. Fill your sink with water and dish soap and soak for about an hour, and your light cover should come out nice and clean.