No Ordinary Earthquake

I was having a chat with two of my co-teachers when I received a text message. As I read: “Lumindol sa Japan ah, kamusta mga ate mo don?” I didn’t pay much attention to it thinking it’s just one another earthquake that hit Japan.

I’ve been to this country for a few times so I know firsthand how frequent this unpredictable tremor shakes the place. I won’t forget waking up one night by the noise of a chandelier swinging above me. I felt terrified; it was the strongest quake I have ever experienced. Shockingly, no one in the house got awakened by it other than me.

Hence, I continued to our after class hobby – chit chatting. A moment later, I received another text, almost the same message but from a different person. This time, I got already worried so I looked for a computer and verified it through online news. I got absorbed by what I saw.

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Stunning images appeared; dozens of dwellings, cars, boats and even buildings submerged under a layer of muddy water. I realized; this couldn’t be just an ordinary earthquake. Only to find out it was an aftermath of tsunami – caused by a massive earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 struck off the northeastern coast of Japan.

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Thus, I hurriedly sent a message to my sisters. And seconds later I got their response: “We all got frightened but thank God we’re ok”. That caused me an instant relief. Indeed, thank God nothing bad had happened to them.

However, my worries remain because treats are still imminent in Japan; aftershocks, nuclear explosions, radiation leak, rising death toll and more. And that my loved ones are still there.