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Sadako
Sadako’s best friend from school. When Chizuko first visits Sadako in the hospital, she brings Sadako several pieces of colorful papers and a pair of scissors, and instructs Sadako in the art of making origami paper cranes. She tells Sadako that, according to legend, if a sick person folds one thousand paper cranes, he or she will become healthy again. The cranes Chizuko introduces into Sadako’s life give her a goal and a purpose during her long stay in the hospital, and allow her to feel hope even in her darkest moments.
Chizuko Quotes in Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
The Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes quotes below are all either spoken by Chizuko or refer to Chizuko. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2 Quotes
At the entrance to the Peace Park people filed through the memorial building in silence. On the walls were photographs of the dead and dying in a ruined city. The atom bomb—the Thunderbolt—had turned Hiroshima into a desert. Sadako didn’t want to look at the frightening pictures. She held tight to Chizuko’s hand and walked quickly through the building.
“I remember the Thunderbolt,” Sadako whispered to her friend. “There was the flash of a million suns. Then the heat prickled my eyes like needles.”
“How can you possibly remember anything?” Chizuko exclaimed. “You were only a baby then.”
“Well, I do!” Sadako said stubbornly.
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As Sadako and Chizuko enter the Peace Day memorial building, the two girls are confronted with images of loss, suffering, death, and destruction from the nuclear bombing. Though they are just schoolgirls, these images, and the legacy of the “Thunderbolt,” are very alive in their minds each and every day. This is perhaps why Sadako thinks she can remember the bombing—she has been told stories and seen images of that fateful day so many times that it has become real in her mind. As Sadako passes through the building, she turns away from those images when confronted with them directly—perhaps Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Com
Chapter 5 Quotes
That afternoon Chizuko was Sadako’s first visitor. She smiled mysteriously as she held something behind her back. “Shut your eyes,” she said. While Sadako squinted her eyes shut, Chizuko put some pieces of paper and scissors on the bed. “Now you can look,” she said.
“What is it?” Sadako asked.
Chizuko was pleased with herself. “I’ve figured out a way for you to get well,” she said proudly. “Watch!” She cut a piece of gold paper into a large square. In a short time she had folded it over and over into a beautiful crane.
Sadako was puzzled. “How can that paper bird make me well?”
“Don’t you remember that old story about the crane?” Chizuko asked. “It’s supposed to live for a thousand years. If a sick person folds one thousand paper cranes, the gods will grant her wish and make her healthy again.” She handed the crane to Sadako. “Here’s your first one.”
Sadako’s eyes filled with tears. Sadako took the golden crane and made a wish. The funniest little feeling came over her when she touched the bird. It must be a good omen.
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In the hospital, Sadako is alone for the first time, and deeply frightened. She is saddened by the reality of her illness and afraid of what comes next. When her friend Chizuko visits, her company alone lifts Sadako’s mood, but things really turn around when Chizuko introduces Sadako to the legend of the paper cranes. Sadako, whose optimism and hope had begun to slip away, finds it restored by the promise of the idea that folding cranes could be her path back to health and her old life. Just touching the crane that Chizuko has made for Sadako with love Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accu
Chapter 6 Quotes
Everyone saved paper for Sadako’s good luck cranes. Chizuko brought colored paper from class. Father saved every scrap from the barbershop. Even Nurse Yasunaga gave Sadako the wrappings from packages of medicine. And Masahiro hung every one of the birds, as he had promised.
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As Sadako’s illness progresses, the cranes become the only thing keeping her positive and focused on recovery. The cranes have given Sadako a means of returning to the hope and optimism that defined her before her illness, and as she throws her heart and soul into the project of folding one thousand of them her family, friends, and caretakers find themselves pulled into the hope the cranes offer along with Sadako. Everyone helps Sadako as she strives to achieve her goal, and though the myth of the crane is just that—a myth—it bolsters everyone’s hope and courage and gives Sadako’s Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam c
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Chizuko Character Timeline in Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
The timeline below shows where the character Chizuko appears in Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: Peace Day
...air outside is warm and the streets are busy. Sadako runs to her best friend Chizuko’s house—the two of them have been “close as two pine needles on the same twig”...
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...bodies and ruined buildings line the walls. Sadako looks away from the pictures and holds Chizuko’s hand tightly. Sadako tells Chizuko that she remembers the bombing—“there was the flash of a...
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Chapter 5: The Golden Crane
Sadako’s first visitor that afternoon is Chizuko. She approaches Sadako’s bed and tells Sadako to shut her eyes. When Sadako opens them...
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...first golden crane into her hand and feels a funny feeling come over her. When Chizuko leaves, Sadako sets to work on folding cranes. Some of them are lopsided, but Sadako...
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Chapter 6: Kenji
...family start saving paper for her to use to make the good luck origami cranes. Chizuko brings Sadako paper from school, her father saves every scrap he can from his barbershop,...
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Chapter 8: Last Days
...small steps around her room, everyone agrees that she looks like a princess. Just then, Chizuko comes in for a visit, and tells Sadako that she should wear the beautiful kimono...
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