Monday, May 19, 2008
Calamities.
This age of uncertainty. Anything can happen anywhere to anyone.
First it was the Myanmar cyclone Nargis incident, and the the 7.8 Earthquake in Sichuan. I used to look at these disasters with nonchalance, with a "that has nothing to do with me" mindset. I suppose we all have this thinking at one point.
Watching the news on the earthquake on CCTV-4 however, felt like a hammer blow to the very core of my beliefs and character. One snippet mentioned that some trapped victims had to have their limbs amputated on the spot to be extracted from the debris, including both arms or both legs etc. These people are unrelated to me, but why do I feel such pain in my heart? Why do I start wondering what I would have felt if I was in their shoes?
On another news flash, a 12 year old girl who thought she had become an orphan reunited with her father through a telephone call. The relief she had on her face touched me even, watching on a TV across 4000Km of land and water. Even though she desperately wanted to see her father face to face, she kept enough of her wits to tell her father to help save more people who were trapped in debris.
Indeed, much credit must be given to the 14000 Men and Women from the People's Liberation Army and Public Security Force of China for working tirelessly day and night to search for survivors. Though by now fatalities amounted up to more than 30000, the search parties will continue searching as long as there is hope.
Putting aside differences in ideology, politics, and religion, we have seen Chinese people from all over the world unite in aiding in whatever way possible and to help the victims find peace among the chaos and death. Taiwanese citizens, despite the feuding between the island and mainland China, have mustered donations of up to NT200Million (S$10Million).
Ironic, isn't it, that its the tragedies of the world that unites people, but not the success stories and happiness. What we find in ourselves in tragedies is probably the things we want to present no matter when and what happens.
The televised news and newspaper articles affected me profoundly like never before. With a few more sleepless nights and wet-eyed moments, might I come to terms with what happened in Sichuan. We may be small things compared to the might of nature, but it is the will to live and the ability to grieve that make us human. Let us hope that never will we have to go through tragedies of this magnitude, or at least let us be prepared for that eventuality.
MeOweD`
+ 11:30 PM