My son is turning 10 this week and, as such, is truly beginning to recognize more about the world around him. He is slowly becoming aware of the fact that there is a universe beyond his realm of home, school, church and friends.

This caused him to ask one of those questions that make parents truly uncomfortable: “How could God let something like this happen?”

In fact, many adults are asking the same thing. Thousands of lives lost and even more destroyed by the outcomes of the earth’s core vibrations is confusing for us all.

We handled our responses with care and discussed that nature causes things to happen and that faith helps us to cope with it all.

For me, the waves washing over the shores of Japan and the Pacific Rim reminded me of hurricanes we have dealt with on the Gulf Coast, though the devastation of this quake is much greater than even Hurricane Katrina wrought on our shores. Yet, the tragedy and the shock of it all washed over me again as I watched the news…… recalling that the aftermath of a tragedy is sometimes as bad as the event itself.

The people of Japan have years of healing and rebuilding in front of them and they are not yet certain of the extent of their devastation as an anxious world watches what may happen next.
Americans are always generous of spirit and with our support. We will reach our hands across the globe to help our neighbors cope with this event as we have with all others. There are a number of ways to the support the cause, including the Red Cross. Visit Redcross.org or text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10 from your phone.

A last thought is that this event helped me to put in perspective all the petty bickering over events in our federal, state and local governments. Tragedy always serves to remind us of what is truly important.

As I said to my sweet son, “doesn’t this make arguing over cleaning your room feel kind of silly?” Yes. It does. Instead, let this event serve as a reminder to treasure the people you love most and tell them so!

In the meantime, let us keep our fellow humans in our thoughts and prayers.