Imagine the middle class western society city you live in. The school you attended as a child is down the street. Your favourite shops are close by and always open when you expect them to be. There is the friendly old man who lives down the street who loves working in his beautiful garden everyday. You don't even think twice about popping in to buy groceries or wander around the mall. Parkades don't worry you, you just park wherever you find a spot. The occasional pothole in the road makes you grumpy and you wonder why the city workers don't fix it. If you're one of the few who have lived most of your lives in the same neighbourhood, you know everyone on your street. You make plans to paint a room in your house, or renovate your kitchen. You water your flowers and add plants when you want to and sometimes complain about the rocky soil. You can go for a run or walk around your neighbourhood without ever looking down at the sidewalk in front of you to see if it's changed overnight. Except for the odd nightmare, your kids happily sleep in their own rooms, and the only thing you worry about at night is that the neighbourhood cat may end up in a fight and disturb your sleep. You can plan your retirement, what home you will live in, the area you will live. It's up to you. You can go into the center of your city and see the same buildings that have been there since the city began. You never think twice that someday it could all change.
In Christchurch is has all changed, it continues to change and the change is expected to continue for the next 30 years. Change that wasn't planned for or expected. Change that has brought fear, distress, anxiety, tears, sleepless nights.... but yet, change that has brought hope, innovation, new friendships, a future. Since September 2010 when a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck at 4.35 am, there have been 3 more major earthquakes (22 February 6.3 magnitude at 12.54pm killing over 180 people; 13 June 5.9 at 1pm; 23 December 5.9 magnitude at 1.58pm), not to mention the 9000+ aftershocks that have happened over the past 500+ days. (if you want to 'see' it, go to this website).
For the 400,000 people of Christchurch there are 400,000 stories - stories about where they were when the 'big ones' happened; stories about how the quakes have affected everything from their sleep patterns to their new habit of looking for a safe place whenever they enter a building to avoiding parkades and the 'dangerous' aisles in the supermarket; stories about the assessment of their property and their house and the consequences that assessment holds for their future; stories about how their children and their parents have been affected by the quakes; stories about their friends and neighbours and how the quake has affected their lives; 400,000 different stories. For many people they feel like there is no one to listen to their story, no one who cares.
The elderly widow/widower who lays alone in bed each night hoping and praying that there will be no more tremors in the earth; who has no one to sit with them and listen to their fears and feelings of helplessness; who were once able to 'take on the world' and now are too old and frail to muster up the energy to deal with the vast side effects of what has happened to their once stable life; who is often completely on their own to try to figure things out; for whom this is their new reality.
The frantic mother who arrived at the school in February to pick up her child and will never forget the eerie scene of an entire school of children wailing mournfully on the school field; whose children cling to her each time a new quake rocks their city; who keeps a suitcase packed under her bed, ready to get in her car with her kids and drive like crazy in fear that one of the quakes that happens further out in the ocean could cause a tsunami like the one that wiped out the Japanese city not that long ago; who somedays doesn't have the courage to go to the supermarket in case a quake hits and the shelves are emptied onto her and her children; who seldom leaves her children with a babysitter in fear that she will be unable to get back to them should another big one strike; whose children spend countless nights in her bed until they have the courage to once again sleep alone in their room; for whom this is her new reality.
The couple nearing retirement who just about own their house, have it all set up for their retired future, the garden, the renovations, everything just the way they like it, who saw their children grow up and leave home from that house, who have countless precious memories to cherish in their next phase of life; who now face an uncertain future; who for some, depending on the rating of their house and property face unknown years of uncertainty; who will see their cherished memories torn down and carted away; who have to now find new property, a new house, that they can afford on their 'nearing retirement budget'; for whom this is their new reality.
Christchurch can best be described using this story: a lady from Christchurch was in Auckland at a conference. When the woman she was talking to found out she was from Christchurch she said, 'You've had quite a hard time there.' The Christchurch lady said with heartfelt certainty, 'We are STILL having quite a hard time.' It's not over yet, not by a long shot. There are tonnes of silt to remove, hundreds of kilometres of roads and footpaths to repair, an entire riverbank to re-create, a city centre to remove and reinvent, thousands of houses to demolish, thousands of homes to rebuild, a fault-line that needs to 'settle back into place' which will result in countless more earthquakes and aftershocks, 400,000 people to care for. Watch this and know that great things have yet to come, greater things are still to be done in this city. And if this movie comes to your city, try to go see it. I haven't seen it yet, but I've heard that it is very well done.
Christchurch is a modern day city in a western civilized first world nation that is struggling through an enormous natural disaster. We feel honoured and humbled to have been able to help even if only in such a small way. If anyone who reads this has time, energy or resources to help the people of Christchurch rebuild, I encourage you to find a way to do so. If you have no connections in Christchurch contact the Burwood Christian Centre and they will definitely be able to use any help you can provide. May God bless the people of Christchurch with strength, peace, endurance, wisdom, joy, and unity.
In Christchurch is has all changed, it continues to change and the change is expected to continue for the next 30 years. Change that wasn't planned for or expected. Change that has brought fear, distress, anxiety, tears, sleepless nights.... but yet, change that has brought hope, innovation, new friendships, a future. Since September 2010 when a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck at 4.35 am, there have been 3 more major earthquakes (22 February 6.3 magnitude at 12.54pm killing over 180 people; 13 June 5.9 at 1pm; 23 December 5.9 magnitude at 1.58pm), not to mention the 9000+ aftershocks that have happened over the past 500+ days. (if you want to 'see' it, go to this website).
The frantic mother who arrived at the school in February to pick up her child and will never forget the eerie scene of an entire school of children wailing mournfully on the school field; whose children cling to her each time a new quake rocks their city; who keeps a suitcase packed under her bed, ready to get in her car with her kids and drive like crazy in fear that one of the quakes that happens further out in the ocean could cause a tsunami like the one that wiped out the Japanese city not that long ago; who somedays doesn't have the courage to go to the supermarket in case a quake hits and the shelves are emptied onto her and her children; who seldom leaves her children with a babysitter in fear that she will be unable to get back to them should another big one strike; whose children spend countless nights in her bed until they have the courage to once again sleep alone in their room; for whom this is her new reality.
The couple nearing retirement who just about own their house, have it all set up for their retired future, the garden, the renovations, everything just the way they like it, who saw their children grow up and leave home from that house, who have countless precious memories to cherish in their next phase of life; who now face an uncertain future; who for some, depending on the rating of their house and property face unknown years of uncertainty; who will see their cherished memories torn down and carted away; who have to now find new property, a new house, that they can afford on their 'nearing retirement budget'; for whom this is their new reality.
Christchurch is a modern day city in a western civilized first world nation that is struggling through an enormous natural disaster. We feel honoured and humbled to have been able to help even if only in such a small way. If anyone who reads this has time, energy or resources to help the people of Christchurch rebuild, I encourage you to find a way to do so. If you have no connections in Christchurch contact the Burwood Christian Centre and they will definitely be able to use any help you can provide. May God bless the people of Christchurch with strength, peace, endurance, wisdom, joy, and unity.
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