We're feeling the tremors

Good Morning Arizona!

We have felt the tremors from the aftershocks. I must say that the aftershocks must be very tremendous because we are about 60 - 100 miles away from the epicenter. We felt them last night about midnight and one o'clock. The USGS website had them at 4.5 and 4.7 and the local news has them at 5.6 and 5.7 It shook the bed for a few seconds and large enough to wake me up.

Nothing is broken or moved, it's just that the bed shakes. When this happens I think of all of the people in the disaster zone. I read on the CNN website that these recent aftershocks have killed 6 people and destroyed more buildings.

We meet the people from Texas later today. It's raining right now and we're not going to the zoo and see the pandas. Right now there seems to be a sense of quiet and silence amomg the people. I know that the tremors frighten them and they are worried for their family and friends who are in the disaster zone right now.

The people at the university/hospital call us the "brave ones" and are very happy to help us. They call us brave because many of the foreign students who were here during the quake got scared and left. Many of the students that said they were coming got scared and didn't come. There are 9 of us who came and those that didn't leave. We are 4 Americans, 1 Aussie and 4 from Israel. We are the "brave ones."

They say that our presence here helps the Chengdu and Sichuan people. They see that we aren't afraid and going about our business of studying and interning in the hospital. They see us on the streets and in the markets and that makes they feel a little more assured and a little less afraid.

However, I don't feel brave. I think that the people who are living and working in the disaster zone are the brave ones. They are ones whose lives are in danger and are helping the people and are trying to divert the water and have to feel the aftershocks and bury the dead.

They don't want us to go to the disaster zone now because they want us to be safe, they are afraid of having more people there than needed because of the spread of infection. They say that the sanitation conditions are getting worse because it's now the rainy season and the mosquitos are coming.

They say that they want me to "train the trainers" and teach the people who have clearance to work with the children on greif and bereavment. They say that by doing that, I can do more help from a distance than being there. Hmmm, I have to do what they say but those of you who know me well, know that it's killing me not going there and being with the children.

Anyway, we'll learn more this afternoon.

Peace and love,

Tang Li Xin (aka Donna) :-)