This week it’s Japan in the news, a terrible earthquake and tsunami. Damage is heavy in the northern part of the country. Villages and coastal towns have been wiped out by the tsunami. Ports, boats, low-land rice fields, all were damaged. Farther south, there was considerable damage in the Tokyo area. At least five nuclear reactors are damaged, at least one seriously.
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| Imperial Palace Mote, Tokyo - Photo by MWL |
I sent e-mails off to some of my friends and associates there. My closest friend there answered from his home that he and his family are ok. For the others, I used their office e-mail addresses, so it may be a few days before they are back to work and seeing messages, so let’s hope. (Update: I got messages back from all my associates, all families ok, no damage to houses)
During the last 16 months or so, I have been to Japan five times, each time for about a week. When I was 12, I spent a summer there. On each trip, I’ve been wondering if I would feel an earthquake. The quake this week was the strongest ever recorded, but even between major quakes there are minor tremors all the time. Well, I never felt one, and a “major” never happened either, so I count myself lucky.
Let us all wish our Japanese friends the best of luck in repairing their cities, their lives, their nuclear reactors, (and one of the largest economies in the world).
- M. W. Laughlin
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| Golden Temple, Kyoto - Photo by MWL |
