1001 Cranes by Naomi Hirahara

Author:Naomi Hirahara [Hirahara, Naomi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Novel
ISBN: 9780375848810
Publisher: Yearling
Published: 2009-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

The coffeehouse turns out to be the church’s kitchen and a large rectangular folding table. Mrs. O orders a strawberry smoothie for me and a plain water for herself. We sit outside on a couple of folding chairs.

Most everyone seems to have left by now. It’s only the two of us on this side of the building.

“You’re probably wondering what’s going on.” Mrs. O presses her dry lips against the edge of a flimsy plastic cup. “I had breast cancer about five years ago. And it’s come back.”

I suck on my straw and look down. For some reason, my eyes start to blink so fast that I can’t see straight.

“I’ve had to go in for treatments recently. That’s why you see me getting ill.”

“You still have your hair,” I say. My third-grade teacher went through chemotherapy and lost her hair. Instead of wigs, she wore cool long scarves. She is still teaching at my elementary school, as far as I know. She taught us that when you survive cancer, it’s called remission.

“Chemo affects people in different ways. My hair just gets curlier, like I had a perm.”

“Oh,” I say. I don’t know if that’s good or bad.

“Nobody knows, Angela. Well, except for Mr. Oyama. But nobody else does. Not my sons. Not my daughters-in-law.”

I just stare at her.

“I want to wait until after our anniversary party. I want people to be happy and celebrate, not afraid that I’m going to die. Maybe you’re too young to understand.”

In a way I do understand. Why have a bunch of people worried about you when you have enough to worry about yourself? I don’t know about Pastor Barry’s theory about asking for help. Mrs. Oyama is a Christian but she’s super-private as well.

I don’t say much more to Mrs. O. But I do promise that I won’t tell. Mrs. O is lucky: I’m the best secret keeper of any girl I know.

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