I realize what I'm about to say is completely irrational but I'm finding myself more and more angered by this "phenomenon" I'm seeing so I'm going to just put it out there.
We drove around today from 9:00 to 4:30 to visually document the devastation in nearby towns. We probably hit nine or ten altogether. The degree of destruction largely depended upon how high the elevation was (how soon the elevation rose from sea level upwards) and how densely populated the areas were.
At the risk of stating the obvious, this was a huge wave. Boats were pushed hundreds of feet inland. Houses were pushed off their foundations and some tossed onto their sides. Cars were on top of roofs. Throughout all this, I saw two things that stayed in place in houses. I saw this consistently. All over the place. I'm warning you. This will make no sense. Evidently, curtains and blinds are able to withstand a wave that pushes items through houses, blows out windows, and sends trees into said open windows (with curtains still in place and in tact).
This angers me. Curtains are supposed to be flimsy. Curtains weigh nothing. Curtain rods are not meant to be strong household items. Curtains are about decorating. Not sustaining. They're not supposed to outlast and outwit a tsunami.
I don't understand why curtains and blinds survive when houses, heavy machinery and people don't. I suppose my anger at these curtains may come from the idea that I feel mocked by their survival. I'm not saying this is rational. I'm just being honest.
I will paraphrase a Japanese saying: "The Mighty Oak is firm and strong. The Weak Grass just bends. Yet it is the grass that is standing the morning after the wind storm uproots the oak.
ReplyDeleteThe blinds and curtains are a metaphor for the Japanese value that compliance is strength.
Amya, please tell us of your volunteer efforts there. Some of us may be able to help. Walker Wynkoop.