It wasn't until my husband sent me SMS about the earthquake that rocked Japan that jolted me into making urgent phone calls to our sister who happens to be in Tokyo that week. It was a relief to get SMS reply from her not a few hours after I left a recorded message, that she is safe in the outskirts of Tokyo. We continued correspondence via SMS to track her whereabouts until finally we were able to confirm that she is will be able to get a flight out back to Singapore. Thanks to facebook, we also knew our friends in Kobe are safe and well.
When I got home and watched the footages of the earthquake and tsunami aftermaths, the devastation and destruction was just too much to conjure.
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| Tsunami surging onto a village. Photo from The Telegraph. |
More than ten years ago, Alvin and I lived in a flat in Makati as newly weds. Heavy rain and flooding hit Metro Manila and the area where we lived ended up in waist-high flood. Needless to say, some of our things at home which were stored on floor, literally went to the dumps after that. It included all the photo negatives from our wedding day and damaged our wedding album itself. You can say that we were better left with memories.
It was my first intimation that all things material, they don't last forever.
The earthquakes and the tsunami in Japan -- and in many other nations prior to that -- and no doubt, all else that could follow, is an intimation that everything in this world, can be swept and gone in one woosh. Nothing lasts forever. I can't help but think that all these natural disasters that has been happening one after another, is probably sending us a message.
Japan has endured many other catastrophes- we have seen the tenacity of spirit of this nation and know that they shall be able to rise and rebuild from the tragedy.
May God with with Japan. And be with us all.
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