Fukushima girl's dream comes to life on handkerchief

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Ten-year-old Himeka Suzuki's dream has come true on a handkerchief months after she lost her life in the Great East Japan Earthquake.

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Asahi Asia & Japan Watch
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36.995072, 140.981723
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36.995072
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140.981723
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36.995072,140.981723
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By ATSUSHI MATSUKAWA / Staff Writer
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By ATSUSHI MATSUKAWA / Staff Writer
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English
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English Title
Fukushima girl's dream comes to life on handkerchief
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Ten-year-old Himeka Suzuki's dream has come true on a handkerchief months after she lost her life in the Great East Japan Earthquake.Himeka, who was fond of painting and won a number of awards, wanted to become a designer someday. The little girl got her wish, as designer Meiji Takeuchi has produced a handkerchief based on her 2009 prize-winning painting of the Shioyazaki lighthouse near her home in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture."We cannot see the Shioyazaki lighthouse at this angle from anywhere," said her father, Takashi, 35. "It's as if Himeka painted this lighthouse, watching it from heaven." The lighthouse stands firm against a blue sea, a yellow sky and a green earth, with the sun shining in the background."Here is an impressive combination of colors," said Takeuchi, 63, who runs his own design studio in Kyoto. "When you see this painting, you feel both happy and comforted. It is as good as works by professionals."Himeka's father met Takeuchi for the first time on Nov. 27 at an exhibition of handkerchiefs in Tokyo designed to support post-quake recovery."This is the first heartwarming moment for me after the earthquake," a smiling Takashi said as he looked at Takeuchi's handkerchief, one of the 586 entries.Himeka, a fourth-grader at Toyoma Elementary School, described her dream in an essay titled "To me 10 years from now," writing, "I may be working as a designer or studying to become a designer."Takeuchi proposed to her bereaved family that he may be of help after reading an Asahi Shimbun story about her dream.The Handkerchiefs for Tohoku Children exhibition, organized by the Japan Graphic Designers Association Inc., is being held at the Tokyo Midtown complex in Minato Ward through Dec. 25. Takeuchi is a member of the trade group.Handkerchiefs are on sale for 1,500 yen ($19) each. When they are sold, those of the same designs will be presented to children in quake-hit areas.

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