My Tokyo Earthquake post

This post is over a month belated. The Tokyo earthquake of March 14, 2011 destroyed thousands of lives and the tsunami redrew the coastline, killing thousands more. The resultant damages to nuclear reactors created a radiation hazard that continue to plague the lives of people in northeastern Honshu.

Not many people in my immediate circle know that my brother, my only sibling, lives in Tokyo. We have rarely spoken to each other. There have been times we've been estranged and the physical distance, the stress of modern living, jobs exacerbated the gulf between us. But the news of the earthquake was troubling. I remember telling myself that if any country in the world is equipped to handle an earthquake, it is Japan. Then I tried calling my brother and sister-in-law's cell phones. No connection.

I kept calling, while telling myself that things are fine. But it was getting harder to keep the tears at bay. My morning classes started, and I still had no word. I could not reach any number in Japan, in any area. After two hours of non-stop dialling, my tears were falling pretty fast. I did not care that my students saw me in this vulnerable state. I was doing exactly what I try not do in a crisis: panic.

I called my parents in India, to see if they had heard anything. All they could tell me was that they had spoken to my sister-in-law while she was still in her office, but that the phone had disconnected during their conversation. Hearing this made my fear the worst.

It was my husband who was finally able to make contact through Skype, to find out that everyone was safe. My sister-in-law walked home. There was a food shortage brewing as people were stockpiling food. But other than that, things were normal. Heaving a sigh of relief, I went back to my usual day.