World War II ends definitively with Japanese surrender. On August 15 the Emperor broadcast to the people of Japan announcing this fact. Some Japanese soldiers and officers, shocked by the surrender and by the actual fact of the Emperor's broadcast, committed suicide. It was later established that the execution of Allied POWs continued for some time.
Actual Instruments of Surrender were not signed by the Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigimetsu till September 2 on board SS Missouri but sixty-five years ago this day the war ended.
My Mum used to say, not without some guilt, that as her formative years she had the time of her life during WWII. For her, childhood's end came in 1946, when Scottish POWs who'd been imprisoned in Japanese camps came back.
Many people had a good time during the war for all sorts of reasons though one can understand why there should be a feeling of guilt as some of the horrors were brought home. Yes, childhood would have ended at that point, especially if there were relatives or friends' relatives among the returning POWs.