1000 Paper Cranes

Today I had a wonderful time with Miffy and her husband walking around the city. It was lovely catching up with them.

One of the places we visited was Christchurch's Transitional 'Cardboard' Cathedral. Just inside the door I found this beautiful tree of 1000 paper cranes. They were folded with love by many children and adults from around Aotearoa, New Zealand and the UK between 2011 and 2014 in memory of those who died in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

Christchurch artist Nicola Baird has lovingly turned them into an installation for the fifth anniversary so they can be enjoyed by Cantabrians. Mixed media; paper cranes, willow branch and lamp stand. 

In Japan, the crane is a mystical creature and is believed to live for a thousand years. As a result, in the Japanese, Chinese and Korean culture, the crane represents good fortune and longevity. Japanese refer to the crane as the ‘bird of happiness’.

Traditionally, it was believed that if one folded 1000 origami cranes, one’s wish would come true. It has also become a symbol of hope and healing during challenging times. As a result, it has become to fold 1000 cranes (in Japanese, called “senbazuru”). The cranes are strung and given as gifts.

A famous story about senbazuru is that of Sadako Sasaki, a little girl who was exposed to radiation as and infant when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Although she survived the bomb, she was diagnosed with leukemia by the age of 12. She decided to fold 1000 cranes, hoping that her wish to live would come true.Unfortunately, she only was able to fold 644 cranes before she passed away. Here classmates then continued to fold
 cranes in her honour and she was buried with a wreath of 1000 cranes to honour her dream.