Haiti Hitting Close to Home...

Though I by no means wish to make my situation seem even remotely as bad as those down on Hispaniola, the earthquake in Haiti struck a nerve very close to my heart. Both my father and mother work for the State Department, and both of my parents have recently taken assignments to Port-au-Prince. My father moved there in October and my mother planned to go down this summer with my little sister, Marie. I can only be thankful that my dad was back here in the US visiting me over Christmas when the quake hit. The house where my mother was going to live is now in ruins, as is their future in Haiti. My father has been working on a task force in DC for the past week - I'm not complaining, he's doing very good work.

I guess I just don't know how I feel about all of this. My entire family could have died in that quake. I could be an orphan right now... All I know now is that clearly they were meant to be helping the people of Haiti. I want to go and help but I don't know when or how that will happen.

It's also really made me think about living in a city like San Francisco, where an earthquake like the one in Haiti is a serious possibility. What would I do in a situation like that? I don't mean in terms of behavior during the earthquake, that sort of thing I know, it's more in terms of the aftermath. Would my school be intact? Would I be going to classes? Would I move back to VA with my mother? Would I stay in SF and help clear the rubble or pass out food? Would I even be alive? Would my friends?

It's a lot to think about.


Nostalgically Yours