Kudos for 60th events on Tinian

Editor’s note: The following is an e-mail addressed to Phillip Mendiola-Long, chairman of the organizing committee for the 60th anniversary of the atomic missions to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Permission has been obtained to reprint them here.

Hi Phil,

Let me begin by thanking you, the mayor, all the others who brought everyone together, and especially those veterans and family members who attended. As I reflect on my experiences there, I am struck by what a landmark event the 60th Commemoration was.

The time I spent on Tinian with my father is now a personal treasure I will remember the rest of my life. What he and so many others like him experienced is now alive in me. I don’t think that my grasp of the enormous impact the atomic missions have on the human race would have been nearly as whole if there were not veterans from both sides of the conflict there. Everyone had a story to tell. As they told of their experiences, pivotal ones in the lives of many of them, I could see the earnest desire to teach how important it is to learn from them. I didn’t see simply the fears and suffering that war wrought, but I think the equally profound message to carry away from the commemoration is the persistent courage and hope that is part of everyone, everywhere.

I understand so much better now the events, the suffering and the hope of those who were there in World War II. I hope to convey to anyone who will listen the words that will help them understand, too.

I struggled during the time I was there, and still do, with finding a two- or three-sentence explanation that makes sense of all the events toward the end of the war in the Pacific. Perhaps it would be easier if I were a philosopher and could wrap it up in those terms, but I can’t. I don’t need to make sense of those events 60 years ago. I have learned the only important lesson—I understand what happened.

It’s history, among the other acts of man throughout history. People of all nations suffered tragic losses during the war. I observed Japanese and Americans reconciling with each other, and within themselves. It’s most important that 60 years after the fact, there’s been no use of atomic weapons, and healing and hope have prevailed. Those are the legacies that really count. The 60th commemoration on Tinian was indeed peaceful, and an event that I hope will help all people see the profound life-preserving impact the atomic missions had, and continue to have.

Mark Zahn
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