Exactly one year ago last year, on March 11 at 2:46 pm Japan time, the country was rocked by a massive earthquake and tsunami which killed thousands and set off a nuclear crisis. While Japan has made great strides in the recovery effort in the affected areas, the Japanese people are still suffering from the physical damage and emotional trauma brought on by the triple disaster.
At the time, I was less than a month away from giving birth to Mio, and I could do very little else to contribute to the relief effort than to donate money while caring for a newborn baby in the months following the disaster. However, my family was far from uninvolved in the relief effort — my father spent several sleepless nights interpreting between the US and Japanese governments to discuss how to control the nuclear crisis, and my sister Miwa spent a part of her summer volunteering for the Japanese Red Cross in Ishinomaki to bring aid to one of the most heavily damaged cities — and I couldn’t be more proud of them.
“The pain of one part of humankind is the pain of the whole of humankind. And the human species and the planet Earth are one body. What happens to one part of the body happens to the whole body.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh
While we may be living on the other side of the globe from Japan, we are all connected. Seeing the images and hearing the stories of the victims brought heartbreak to people around the world. At the same time, many of us were inspired by the resilience, selflessness, compassion, and strength exhibited by the Japanese people in their darkest hours. I continue to pray for the victims and their families, and hope that Japan can persist in rebuilding to see brighter days.
It’s been over a week since the devastating M 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit Japan, and the nightmare only seems to have gotten worse in the days that have followed, with a nuclear crisis and shortages of food and water in the affected areas. I’ve been keeping up to date with our family and friends in Japan on the phone as well as on Skype, and some of their stories have been unimaginable and painful to hear. It’s difficult to believe such an industrialized country as Japan — one of Asia’s wealthiest — is now suffering such deprivation; the nation has surely never seen such hardship since World War II.
As we reported immediately after the earthquake and tsunami, we have confirmed that all of our family and friends are safe, but we have since found out that Miho, one of Dan’s cousins who lives in Miyagi Prefecture (where the epicenter of the quake was as well as one of the areas that was hardest hit by the tsunami) has lost her home to the tsunami. She has been in a shelter for the past week (presumably with her family) and of course her safety and wellbeing is more important than anything, but we cannot fathom how awful it must be to lose your house and see your town wiped out in a matter of minutes. Dan’s parents are trying to send some financial relief over to their family to help them rebuild. For the moment, we’re worried about whether or not the shelter she is in has enough food, water and resources to sustain her and the other victims, especially in the snow and freezing temperatures that have fallen upon the affected areas in recent days. Please keep Miho and her family — as well as all the other earthquake and tsunami victims — in your thoughts and prayers.
I have been following updates on the disaster situation in Japan regularly every day, whether it be via online news or watching streaming news from Japan on my NHK World TV Live app on my phone. (Luckily, I happened to get the iPhone right before this tragedy struck and have been able to keep up with news directly from Japan 24-7 with this app, even now when the American TV coverage is no longer so focused on Japan.) It’s been difficult to watch the situation turn more and more grim in some respects, but I have also been moved and inspired by the human stories that have surfaced amidst such a horrible disaster: The four-month-old baby who was rescued unscathed and reunited with her parents after three days. The 60-year old man who was rescued after being swept 10 miles out to sea. The loyal dog who heroically refused to leave his injured fellow canine’s side (ultimately getting both of them rescued and taken into veterinary care). The heroic Fukushima 50, the nameless 200 men who have stayed behind and are working around the clock to control the situation at the nuclear plant, while everyone else has been evacuated. The elderly man who, after being rescued three days after the earthquake, told reporters with a smile that “Let’s rebuild it all again.”
It has been noted by the media that there has been no looting or violence in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami, which is unusual in the wake of a natural disaster, when chaos typically tends to breed social anarchy. Many have praised the Japanese for their discipline, mutual respect, and allegiance to keeping societal order, while some have criticized them for their stoicism and apparent lack of emotion. As this article mentions, however, this can be mainly attributed to the fact that Japan is a group culture in which people are socialized from when they are young to put group interest above individual interest — although such a culture may have its criticisms, in this case it has strengthened the social cohesion of the nation in the face of tragedy. Make no mistake — the Japanese victim hurts like any disaster victim in the world. But as the article notes, he or she has been raised to prefer to mourn as quietly and privately as possible.
Reading the tweets from Japan on the PrayforJapan.jp site, I’m amazed that even though these are the people who are most in need of comfort and hope in these darkest hours, ironically it is their words that have instead moved me to tears and given me the confidence that Japan will overcome this and face a brighter tomorrow. Their words exhibit courage, strength, resilience, compassion, honor, and hope — I’ve never been more proud of the motherland and of the Japanese blood that runs through me.
I have also been touched by my fellow Americans’ concern and efforts to reach and out and send relief to the Japanese victims in their time of need. On my way home from work the other day, I couldn’t help but tear up when I saw a group of young children playing their instruments in front of the BART station, with large cardboard signs indicating that they were raising funds to “Save Japan.” It was been inspiring to see that as we live in an area where there is a sprawling Japanese and Japanese American community, local community organizations and Japanese businesses have all put forth efforts to help out in their own way. The JCCCNC has set up a relief fund with which 100% of the donations will go directly towards citizen relief efforts in the most affected areas. Several Japanese stores and restaurants have set up fundraisers and pledged profits from sales to be sent to Japan to offer relief  and aid. As an interpreter in Washington, DC, my father  has been attending conferences held by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission every day to communicate with Japan this past week about their nuclear crisis and how the NRC can send support and help. Working in 8-hour shifts with other interpreters around the clock, he’s been fighting the exhaustion so that he can help Japan in the best way he can. He was also asked to translate a speech by President Obama in support of Japanese citizens during this trying time. Although everyone has their own way of helping, I really believe that every bit of effort makes a difference.
I wish that I could do more, but I feel that all I can do at this time is send monetary donations to support in the relief aid and continue to pray that Japan will recover as smoothly and as soon as possible to see a brighter day.
Our hearts go out to everyone in Japan. We’ve been watching this tragic disaster unfold on the news since last night, and it’s been devastating to witness all the damage and heartbreak that was wrought by the worst earthquake and tsunamis to slam Japan in a century.
We’ve confirmed that my grandparents and relatives on both sides of our family are safe this morning. Thank you to everyone who has expressed their concern. (For those who are trying to find or reach someone in Japan, as well as those who have information on anyone there, Google has launched a People Finder in the wake of this disaster.)
The Bay Area has issued a tsunami warning and a voluntary evacuation for the coastal areas, and we’re still waiting on BART to make a decision on whether they will halt service this morning (hence why I’m not at work yet). We are pretty sure that the effects on the Bay Area will be pretty minimal, but it’s still unnerving.
Japan is still experiencing heavy aftershocks and of course faces a grave crisis and a long road to recovery and rebuilding from the widespread calamitous damage and destruction. Please continue to keep Japan in your thoughts and prayers, and find out how you can help.
