Japan's tragedy

13 years ago

As I look over the devastation in Japan I can't help but think about how much tradition and history means to most Japanese people. They typically have fewer possessions than the equivalent American but in many instances those possessions are treasured heirlooms. Art, tea sets, swords, fabrics even ancient Bonsai. All have meaning, all are irreplaceable, many are now gone. Swept out to see, buried in ruble that will be cleared quickly with heavy equipment and either destroyed in the process or burned with the debris. The traditional houses themselves, a pile of matchsticks. And if you spend any time at all studying traditional carpentry you know there are very few craftsmen left that can duplicate the traditional building techniques. Exotic wood finishes planed by hand with planes so sharp they remove mere microns with each pass resulting in a finish so smooth it is purposely left unfinished.

Stuff can never take the place of lost lives and I fully acknowledge that tragedy. But I also grieve for the Japanese as so much of their history, culture and ancestry has been washed away. It is truly a sad time.

Scott

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Comments (3)

User
13 years ago
Amen to that Scott. And the tragedy continues to unfold. With the nuclear reactors approaching meltdown, it is a bitter pill, a real nightmare for the older folks who were alive during WWII and the days after the two atomic blasts. I'm sure they are reeling because they were determined never to have such things touch the lives of their future generations. And here there grandchildren are stripped of that security and safety and dealing with a society no longer predictably benevolent.

But when you look at the geological reality of an island that sits on the intersection of four moving continental plates, they have to be philosophical about the transient nature of individual life.

I was watching footage of the initial tsunami and people were scrambling up pathways seeking to reach safety. The ugly force of debris, not even looking like water but like some volcanic monster, was getting closer as people continued to appear around the corner of this building. Just as it reaches this spot, a man turns back from his own safety to reach out for another person, and then they were both consumed in the maw of this beast. How quickly life is taken. How fragile human life really is.

My prayers to the people of Japan. God bless.
emagineer
13 years ago
One of the reporters made a statement that the kindness and humility of the Japanese people was beyond what has been seen in other countries, including the USA. They ask for very little and remain respectful of each other. A sadness evolves for them and of course hope their lives can be rebuilt, even with so much lost.

I think of the history gone too. Also in Christchurch. The ability to repair (if possible) will take years. And never the same. They lost a lot of history with their people too.
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columbiasc
Original Author
13 years ago
The difference between this event and Katrina are striking. The tsunami/quake victims are calm, patient and orderly. I haven't seen a single clip of people wading out of semi-submerged stores with stolen TV's nor have I seen a single soundbite of some ticked off resident angrily asking when their leader was going to "do something". In equal contrast, these people had very little warning but knew instinctivly what to do without hesitation and without Big Brother telling them to move to higher ground. I'll bet when the time comes they will leave the shelters clean and tidy and in better shape than they found them.

Truly remarkably people.

Scott