This post is a follow up to the last blog post, “Essential Hope”. In the last post, I discussed the phenomenal book by Jane Goodall, Douglas Abrams, and Gail Hudson’s (2021) “The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times”. In the book, Dr. Goodall discussed the amazing resiliency of nature as a powerful reason for hope. I was awe struck by Dr. Goodall’s account of the survival of the camphor trees after the atomic bombing in Nagasaki.
These are pictures of the camphor trees from Shannon Lefebvre’s website . Please see pictures below. A Big Thank you to Shannon for giving me permission to post the pictures of the camphor trees. As you can see in the pictures, the two camphor trees, surrounding the Sanno Shinto shrine, were destroyed in 1945 by the blast of the atomic bomb in Nagasaki. However, they regenerated and and continue to grow magnificently. An incredible testament to the resiliency of nature and strength of hope.
One of the pillars of the Sanno Shrine was destroyed but one remains. There is also a plaque honoring the loss of lives that day in Nagasaki.
REFERENCES
Discover Nagasaki: The Official Visitors’ Guide. Sanno Sign and the One- Legged Tori Sign. https://www.discover-nagasaki.com/en/sightseeing/117
Shannon, F. (2011). Restored Camphor Trees: Nagasaki. https://www.tour-nagasaki.com/2011/07/nagasaki-camphor-trees_26.html,
