after the Tsunami
by Donna Marie
I, along with so many others, were watching news channels, seeing incomprehensible devastation due to the recent tsunami, and interspersed were commercials advertising things like: the newest model SUV, how to invest, or what new camera to buy. Exciting and joyous previews for the upcoming New Year's Eve bashes chilled my spine, but what truly horrified me was the continuous barrage of sensationalized "previews" for newscasts of the tsunami disaster (as though it was necessary to "advertise" it like a movie trailer in order to keep people watching!) It reminded me of how the media often treated the coverage after 9/11... Saying it was distasteful is being kind. To me, it was all a concise analogy of how we live on this "ball".
Most of us, although each having his or her own trials, are still relatively "safe", which also enables us to live in a form of denial. Many partied on New Year's Eve, not necessarily thinking about people suffering through horrific tragedy -- those without even a drop of water to "clink glasses in a toast" to anything, let alone the promise of what a "new" year will bring.
Quietly, from the comfort of our family room, I watched the countdown and the sparkling crystal ball drop in Times Square. Nearly one million people crowded the streets. For me, watching them celebrate to the full felt like I was watching a widow dating and screwing around only a week after her husband died, not caring how her children felt about it.
The night before New Year's Eve, before I sent my less-than-cheery email, I had a deep conversation with a dear, online friend. He felt that sending that email (which reflected the same sentiment I'm expressing here ) was a cruel thing to do because it wasn't "cheery and happy". I didn't agree. To me, it was no different than any other email that often circles the internet countless times, with a message reminding people to be grateful and not to forget those who are suffering. There are at least two points of view on any given subject. Quite a few people replied to my New Year's email with agreement and further comments of their own on how they feel about what's going on in this world we live in. Others feel that "life goes on", and we should celebrate anyway.
Even a hermit under a rock on another planet would be aware of the tragedies that, day-after-day, year-after-year, pile one on top of the other here on this planet earth, this "ball of confusion"; tragedies, natural and man-driven, occurring on a global scale with global effect; tragedies that affect people that surround us, and often exist between us.
Yes, life does go on and we must live with hope, keeping our heads high more often than hung in despair. We hope for a Happier New Year with all its positive possibilities chasing the negative ones away, but for me, the most sincere hope I have, the one I have true confidence and faith in, doesn't lie within myself or with some obscure fate -- t is that when people ask "why" when observing this "Ball of Confusion", they begin to search for -- and understand -- the reasons. There are answers. You just have to know where to look�
The Message @ www.simmerartist.com
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