In the early morning hours, my sister lay awake and praying. It was her habit and her tendency to be thinking of others - her family, her loved ones - in this way. On her lap a Bible lay, with her notes, and all was quiet.
My sister gazed out the window at the city lights below. There was a pre-dawn light just visible before sunrise, and likely the children would sleep at least until then. There would be time to make her lists and see to the details of a young and busy family new to the San Fernando Valley.
It was 6:00:41 a.m.
She closed her eyes to pray but - what was this?! She was interrupted by a sudden and disastrous rolling of the earth. And then her life - their lives - all changed instantly.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alaskanlibrarian/4974735686/
The long quake was violent, and from the 2nd floor we might as well have been in a ship at sea. I had been sound asleep on the living room couch, but lay there now frozen with the covers pulled tightly over my head. All I knew were the horrible crashings and bangings and hideous screeches as everything, it seemed, fell down around us. In the background of this cacophony I could hear the children crying out.Their parents ran into their room and leaned on the bunk beds to keep the girls from tumbling to the floor. We all waited, hanging on for dear life. When at last the shaking had stopped, we listened as one final glass rolled down and splintered on the kitchen floor. I finally heard my name being called, and: "Are you alright??"
"An earthquake."
You must forgive my naiveté dear Readers, but earthquakes didn't happen in our small northern town. It seemed a nightmare and left me speechless. The sight of the sun coming up while the moon was still in the sky and the dust in the air felt so strange. We were all emotionally as well as physically shaken on that February day of 1971.
In almost no time, several things happened in quick succession:
- we heard that 64 people had died
- we felt the dreaded aftershocks
- several freeway interchanges collapsed
- some of the structures of 2 area hospitals fell in
- tens of thousands fled to avoid a possible collapse of the Van Norman dam
- our apartment building was evacuated, and we were invited to stay with an aunt and uncle
- we all contracted stomach flu and gave it to our gracious hosts (!)
(My brother-in-law has remained a staunch advocate of earthquake preparedness since that day. There is not one item in his home that is not nailed down or affixed in some way. Supplies for emergencies are in the garage, ready and waiting. You don't have to say 'earthquake' twice, around him!)
VA Hospital
The fear and the uncertainty of all these things were appalling that day. But there was also a sweet blessing in the midst: hearing my sister and family singing the song, rather shakily at first, "My Lord Knows The Way Through The Wilderness!" over and over. We all joined in, ostensibly to help the children feel safer - but I can tell you right now, the grownups needed its message just as much!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/smaedli/3376681981/
The Lyrics
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness
All I have to do is follow.
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness
All I have to do is follow.
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness
All I have to do is follow.
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness
All I have to do is follow.
Strength for today, is mine all the way
And all that I need for tomorrow.
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness
All I have to do is follow.
And all we have to do is Follow.
See you along the way!
the SconeLady
photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/alaskanlibrarian/4974735686/">AlaskanLibrarian</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>
photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/smaedli/3376681981/">smaedli</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">cc</a>
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