Report by Ms. Bruna Rondoni, the City of Cervia, Italy
On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bombs, a delegation from Aalen, a German city twinned with Cervia, and several classes from Cervia’s primary schools visited Rondano Dondini Park in Montaletto to learn about the history of “Pacifico”. The delegation was welcomed by the Mayor of Cervia, Mattia Missiroli, and the Peace Councillor, Michela Brunelli, along with the pupils and their teachers.
The presence of the German delegation from Aalen, led by Deputy Mayor Bernd Schwarzendorfer, was particularly significant this year, as the ginkgo biloba was donated to the City of Cervia ten years ago by the then mayor of Aalen, through Mayors for Peace. It is, in fact, a second-generation plant, grown from the seeds of trees that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.
The pupils of Buonarroti Primary School welcomed the German delegation. Together with their teachers, they told the story of “Pacifico”, which was planted in Rondano Dondini Park, adjacent to the school, as follows:
The presence of Pacifico in our park, in fact, is also linked to the experience that we, fifth grade students, have had the opportunity to live every year since 2016 — a kind of leap into the past to explore in person a reality very different from ours, which has left a deep mark. Indeed, every year, in the days preceding the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (22 January) and the Day of Remembrance (27 January), we have the opportunity, through a link with Hiroshima, to “meet” a Hibakusha, the one who survived the atomic bomb. Their presence has given us real life lessons, especially this year, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bombs.
Fortunately, the human soul also has the possibility to change things, and what is imprinted in the mind now must serve as a warning for the future, tomorrow, for all of us. Today’s experience has taught us that we can be better.
Photos: courtesy of the City of Cervia