Asahi Shimbun Morning Edition, December 4, 1999
A man who has been living a long life of illness since being exposed to radiation in Nagasaki visited a psychiatric clinic, complaining that the pain from his chronic rheumatoid arthritis was preventing him from sleeping.
"I was a champion in ballroom dancing during the war. As a hibakusha, I have suffered from various illnesses, struggled to hold down a job, and dance was my only joy. But now, my arthritis causes so much pain in my joints that I can no longer enjoy it..." His tone was calm, not the least bit resentful. His face, well past seventy, showed no sign of the pain he carried.
I was deeply moved by the story of this modern boy who, even amid the storm of militarism, had immersed himself in ballroom dancing, and who, after surviving the bombing, continued to love dance while battling pain. Though outpatient consultations are often referred to as "three-minute examinations," I found myself listening to his story for an unusually long time.
It reminded me of the 1993 film Swing Kids, set in Hamburg in 1939. It was a time when the Nazis were expanding their influence, and young people were being drawn into the Hitler Youth one after another. The film depicted a group of young men who passionately danced to American jazz, only to have their friendships torn apart by the organizational principles of loyalty to the Nazi regime.
One young man, refusing to play Nazi songs on his instrument, took his own life. Another, who refused to gather intelligence on anti-Nazi activities and instead defiantly shouted "Heil Swing," was sent to a concentration camp. Even parents were potential informants, and people lived in constant fear of those around them.
To the former modern boy, I prescribed a single antidepressant to take before bed.
"Thanks to that, I was able to sleep well and even went back to the dance hall."
Hearing this two weeks later, I felt relieved.
Reports occasionally surface about the rise in leukemia and thyroid cancer following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. The hibakusha of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been suffering for more than half a century. It may be just a small form of healing, but sometimes, even that can bring joy.
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