A QUIET DAY IN JAPAN ENDED IN TRAGEDY

A QUIET DAY IN JAPAN ENDED IN TRAGEDY
Originally uploaded by roberthuffstutter

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT JAPAN'S TRAGIC NATURAL DISASTER
By Robert L. Huffstutter

"If we don't have some fun while we are able to laugh, smile and grin, with others and even while alone, what is the purpose of our presence on Earth?

I just received this month's National Geographic with some delightful photos taken of the Milky Way by the Hubble telescope. I looked at them with awe and admiration. How great it would be to go soaring in an out of "old body" experience. To spend eternity exploring this vast universe, soaring, soaring, marveling at the sights, many never yet seen by any telescope.

I thought about this and suddenly I felt depressed again.

To go soaring in all of this beauty--alone? No, that would be cruel. Oh, for a few years, waiting to be reunited with a friend or lover or spouse, that would be a breeze. But to soar about in the vast universe alone forever would be, for me, very lonely. After a few years of this lonely flight, I would certainly be screaming for another spirit with whom I could share the beauty.

There is so much we do not know about life while we are living, it tires my mind to try and figure out the scheme of things.

Why, for example, are there great tragedies like the ones we have seen during our lifetimes? I am referring to natural disasters, events some consider "acts of God." Well, they have that right. Do I get mad at God? Let each person ask themselves this question.

Think of the tragedies our children, some as young as five, have seen in their short lives. When we think of the sorrows those in their 80s and 90s have experienced, it is amazing that they are still, in many cases, able to rise in the mornings and enjoy their tea and coffee.

Of course, many of these tragedies like World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the mass murders in Africa, all began by deranged leaders, the religious wars throughout the world, the domestic acts of terrorism, these are neither "natural disasters" or "acts of God."

Human cruelty-- it goes on and on; it is still going on, cruelty and depravity created by man--these are not the "acts of God" though there are those who will disagree.

What happened in Japan is a natural disaster, tragedy created and caused by the forces of nature--energy out of control caused by an earthquake on the ocean floor. Yes, I speak of natural disasters.

While I admire those who are spending their lives trying to "cure" global warming, I believe that this type of geographical error created by civilization is the least of our concerns. When all of the efforts and energy expended by the sincere men and women to keep the earth environmentally correct, we can see what nature can do to totally ____up an orderly and sane society, a disaster that was created by no man or woman but by the forces of nature.

It is easy to get mad at nature. I am totally disappointed with Nature. It is Nature that rules the earth, the universe-- not mankind, not womankind. When will we realize this?

Nevertheless, there are those, now, who will re- focus on the hazards of nuclear energy. It will become yet another new way to funnel money from government to the men and women who naturally find causes to create large and personal bank accounts.

There will be those who will try and charge Japan for whatever damages might occur from their nuclear energy plants. Mark my word, at this very moment, there are government officials in numerous nations trying to figure out how to make Japan pay for what is a natural disaster

By Robert L. Huffstutter