photo by StefanG81
They say things happen in threes. So after last year's earthquakes resulted in horrific conditions in Haiti and serious damage in Chile, I was so relieved that the consequences in Christchurch's earthquake last September were restricted primarily to property damage. It was terrible for the people that live there, but I considered it a real blessing that no lives were lost. I hoped that might be the end of dreadful earthquakes for a while.
But now, I am distressed to hear about devastation from the earthquake in Christchurch again yesterday, including casualties and terrible, life-altering injuries sustained by people needing to be freed from collapsed buildings. The pictures in this slideshow bring it home so forcefully.
D and I were married in and spent our two-month honeymoon touring the whole of New Zealand back in 2003. Christchurch was one of our favorite cities and I vividly remember standing in the cathedral square with the stone tower looming over me. Now that iconic tower is a pile of rubble.
The Kiwis are some of the warmest, most down-to-earth people we've met in our travels. Because we married in New Zealand, it holds a special place in our hearts, and now my heart is breaking for the people of Christchurch and their loved ones around the country and around the world.
If you would like to help, the Red Cross is accepting donations. As I found when reading this article, the response has been so overwhelming that the Red Cross website keeps crashing. This warms the cockles of my jaded heart.
Many blessings to you, Christchurch.
Thanks KB, we here in the antipodes are reeling from this. 76 Dead and 238 still missing and a city raized. Devastating.
ReplyDeleteGreat to know that there is something we can do via the Red Cross. I started a mission relief called International Relief Missions after a trip my husband and I took to the Philippines. Helping people is one of my passions...thanks for the post!
ReplyDelete