IMAGE- oil paint on board commission for "WAR and the GIRL" by ZORN. A song concerning the firebombing of Tokyo during the closing days of World War 2 by the noted Japanese Hip-hop musician. Link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNdp_xlxsFI
"War and The Girl"
"See you tomorrow"
That was the last conversation we had.
Late that night, a roaring sound-
A rain of bombs poured down on Tokyo.
Flames and shouts at Kamado Station,
Screams of "Dad!" and "Mom!" fill the air.
Planes above, a sea of fire below.
Let go of the bucket? you're labeled unpatriotic,
Alone, running for her life-
An eight-year-old girl saw this scene:
A baby burning on its mothers back...
And yet, she couldn't even feel pity.
By dawn, only silence remained.
A flower-patterned plate in a scorched field.
Near the road where she said goodbye to her friend,
She survived under a pile of corpses.
"Give me chocolate."