Friday, March 18, 2011

A letter from Japan.....

My tribute continues....to the brave people of Japan! If you're like me, then you have undoubtedly been touched and amazed at the courage and strength of the Japanese, in this horrific time for them....each one is looking out for the other as opposed to focussing on their own comfort. There is a feeling of "community" and "what can I do to help someone else?" The TV and news have been full of stories of people helping one another, but what really brought it home was a letter my aunt received from a cousin of hers who has lived for the past decade in Sendai, teaching English!


Al I can say is 'read on"....




Hello My Lovely Family and Friends,
First I want to thank you so very much for your concern for me. I am very touched. I also wish to apologize for a generic message to you all. But it seems the best way at the moment to get my message to you.
Things here in Sendai have been rather surreal. But I am very blessed to 
have wonderful friends who are helping me a lot. Since my shack is even 
more worthy of that name, I am now staying at a friend's home. We share 
supplies like water, food and a kerosene heater. We sleep lined up in one room, eat by candlelight, share stories. It is warm, friendly, and beautiful.
During the day we help each other clean up the mess in our homes. People sit in their cars, looking at news on their navigation screens, or line up to get drinking water when a source is open. If someone has water running in their home, they put out sign so people can come to fill up their jugs 
and buckets.
Utterly amazingly where I am there has been no looting, no pushing in 
lines. People leave their front door open, as it is safer when an 
earthquake strikes. People keep saying, "Oh, this is how it used to be in the old days when everyone helped one another."
Quakes keep coming. Last night they struck about every 15 minutes. Sirens 
are constant and helicopters pass overhead often.
We got water for a few hours in our homes last night, and now it is for 
half a day. Electricity came on this afternoon. Gas has not yet come on. 
But all of this is by area. Some people have these things, others do not. 
No one has washed for several days. We feel grubby, but there are so much more important concerns than that for us now. I love this peeling away of non-essentials. Living fully on the level of instinct, of intuition, of caring, of what is needed for survival, not just of me, but of the entire group.
There are strange parallel universes happening. Houses a mess in some 
places, yet then a house with futons or laundry out drying in the sun. 
People lining up for water and food, and yet a few people out walking 
their dogs. All happening at the same time.
Other unexpected touches of beauty are first, the silence at night. No 
cars. No one out on the streets. And the heavens at night are scattered 
with stars. I usually can see about two, but now the whole sky is filled. 
The mountains are Sendai are solid and with the crisp air we can see them 
silhouetted against the sky magnificently.
And the Japanese themselves are so wonderful. I come back to my shack to check on it each day, now to send this e-mail since the electricity is on,
and I find food and water left in my entranceway. I have no idea from 
whom, but it is there. Old men in green hats go from door to door checking
to see if everyone is OK. People talk to complete strangers asking if they
need help. I see no signs of fear. Resignation, yes, but fear or panic, 
no.
They tell us we can expect aftershocks, and even other major quakes, for another month or more. And we are getting constant tremors, rolls, shaking, rumbling. I am blessed in that I live in a part of Sendai that is
a bit elevated, a bit more solid than other parts. So, so far this area is
better off than others.  Last night my friend's husband came in from the 
country, bringing food and water. Blessed again.
Somehow at this time I realize from direct experience that there is indeed
an enormous Cosmic evolutionary step that is occurring all over the world 
right at this moment. And somehow as I experience the events happening now
in Japan, I can feel my heart opening very wide. My brother asked me if I 
felt so small because of all that is happening. I don't. Rather, I feel as
part of something happening that much larger than myself. This wave of 
birthing (worldwide) is hard, and yet magnificent.
Thank you again for your care and Love of me,
With Love in return, to you all,
Anne

How? How does one come out of such a terrible tragedy and have this kind of attitude? We have a lot to learn from these people! Thank you Anne for this letter.

11 comments:

GB said...

As humans were intended to be, what we should all aspire toward. Sending more prayers for those affected (and a few for the rest of the human race too!). Thanks for sharing, K.

My Dream Canvas said...

Thanks for sharing this Kamini. I am glued to the TV. Its silly but sometimes I have this urge to get up and do something.....but I know its futile. A small donation and lots of prayers is all that I can contribute. I feel so helpless, sad and scared and wish I could do more. The people of Japan are a true inspiration and we all can learn a lot from them.

Anonymous said...

Kamini.. this one is awesome.. Yes.. the world surely has a lot to learn from them.. They sure do!! Like I said.. the other day... our colleagues from Japan.. are so so affected.. but are still concerned about us.. and what we should tell our customers.. and how sorry they are... And the letters are so warm, loving and caring.. Its just unbelievable... They are a true inspiration.. and am sure they will come out just fine!!

Shalini said...

Wow, what an inspiring letter and attitude to have. It was amazing yet a bit surreal to get a first hand information on the daily life in Sendai.

krithika said...

The Japanese are the friendliest people I've come across.When we visited Japan, the people used to go out of their way to help us with directions, even tho language was a barrier.
Even after so many tragedies, they have turned out to be so resilient. I hope and pray they come out of this disaster soon. Hats off to them !!

ishmi said...

Thanks for sharing this, Kamini! This letter provides a wonderful insight into the evolution of our race as thinking and feeling creatures. I have read in very many books and also always felt in life that "the contours of our virtues are shaped by our sufferings." Suffering, they say, is intended to turn "steel into artistry" and not turn one insipid. I firmly believe so and my belief was enforced all the more when I read this post. Thanks again!

Sound Horn Please said...

I was quite amazed to read that there is no panic. This letter is so lovely, and beats all the prosaic articles we've been reading in the papers I've been constantly checking my Iphone to see if there is an update on the nuclear situation- its all so sad. I've hoped we've learnt a lesson to stop building nuclear stations finally.

Srimanasa said...

Kamini, can I please share this post amongnst my friends? Its such a simple yet powerful message which I am sure will touch every reader's heart and remind us that we need to respect mother nature.

Kamini said...

Srimanasa...please do! :-)

Unknown said...

what a beautiful post and what an outlook towards life. We sure have many things to learn from them and from this incident.

Val said...

What an extraordinary letter. Thank you for sharing it.