i opened cereal boxes
upside down
and absently stuck them on a shelf
in the fridge,
defying the precision strokes
of my mom,
the domestic engineer of
measured cups
and dough teaspooned to perfect circles
on cookie sheets—
“after all, cooking is chemistry”—
wielder of pinking shears zigzagging
on the bias
of sturdy school-dress cloth plumped by
petticoats.
i fingered the rickrack trimming
black-and-white checks
and scratched at whispered crinoline
irritation.
she never cut, creased, and turned
origami
yet showered our youth with the luck of
1,000 cranes—
a storm of happiness that heals
winter’s blast.
The story of 1,000 paper cranes
Origami cranes came to symbolize healing in Japan because of Sadako Sasaki, who contracted and died of leukemia after the bombing of Hiroshima. Known as “the girl who folded 1,000 paper cranes” to transcend her pain, she launched a peace movement sustained by her family. Ari Beser beautifully pens this story in “How Paper Cranes Became a Symbol of Healing in Japan” (National Geographic).
Related poem
Credit: origami holiday design at the Delaware Art Museum
Beautifully written. It reminded me of an artist friend who made 1,000 origami cranes for one of her art installations: http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/_tgp0730.jpg
Forgot to give you the info on Briana. She’s remarkable! http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/bmartray/2010/11/21-questions-with-brianna-martray/
I held my breath, then held back my tears as I read o=Origami Storm, Cheers Virginia
Thanks, Virginia!
Wow…so beautiful.