Earthquake

I was sitting in the living room watching TV, just about the only thing we were allowed to do during Easter Season in my household.  I grew up in a family dominated by strong beliefs about this season, most of which started with the word “Don’t”: don’t drink, don’t eat meat, don’t go to the beach, don’t have sex, don’t go out… You get the picture. I did not know it then, conditioned as I was, I enjoyed and look forward to the religious movies on the subject of Christ and the liberation of the Jewish people from Egypt as my only distractions.

As I later realized, earthquakes were not unusual during Easter Season in my country, pretty often we got shook up by at least one each season. Which only reinforced the validity of the "don't" policies dominating my household.

As this particular one hit, it took me a moment to realize that it was I –chair and all- moving towards the TV, and not the other way around. I jumped up and ran to the front door; grabbed on to the door frame for balance and support, as I watched the solid ground roll, as if an ocean, wave after loud undulating wave, lifting and dropping the rows of houses lining each side of the street.

There are no words to describe the terror I felt, the impotence. To know that your life, and whether you live or die, is out of your control and can happen at any moment is a sobering awakening.

After what seemed like an eternity, the elusion of solidity returned to the ground, and people in my neighborhood felt safe enough to move about reassuring their neighbors and inspecting the damage done to their houses.

In the grand scheme of things, this was a minor dust up: no one was injured, no one died; houses were barely damaged, none collapsed, and yet the imprint of the experience remains with me to this day. I still remember how everything but your neighbors well being lost importance, how people reached out to one another to give and receive reassurance, how we were there for each other without a doubt, how everyone forgot their personal grievances.

Recently, people in Haiti and Chile have gone through major earthquakes. The devastation is mind numbing. Survivors have the seemingly impossible task of having to move on with their lives.

Please take a moment to find out and do what you can to help.  You might know a person or two, who knows a person or two who are related to someone from these affected areas. Reach out; help. A comforting word of acknowledgement can go a long way. Do that, then, let's talk about you!