Prayers

If you want your prayers answered, get up off your knees and do something about them.

I wrote that yesterday. I do believe it, however it does come across harsh for certain circumstances.

Two weeks ago there was a terrible earthquake in Nepal. Devastating. I first learned about it when I was at the farm and Taylor told me that Greg’s brother was in Nepal, near Everest, in the earthquake zone. My thought at that moment was, ‘oh that’s not good.’ Then I went home.

Naturally I had no idea of the extent of what was happening in that brief conversation. When I got home and got on the computer I learned what was happening. At this point there was over 400 dead and damage to the homes and temples in Kathmandu. I thought about Jonathan, who I didn’t know well, and became concerned.

Then it just escalated. Every day, from that Saturday, I became weepy. I was thinking about all the beautiful architecture, millennia old, gone. The death toll kept rising. Jonathan was nowhere to be found. I’d be driving my car and tears would form. I would be lying in Shavasana in my yoga class and my mind would twist around and I would gulp air.

I thought about Nepal. I know a few Nepalese. Wonderful people and I based my whole concept of what was a Nepalese on them. Beautiful, thoughtful, spiritual, fun-loving, gentle. Everyone in Nepal was like them. And tears kept flowing.

I thought about Jonathan. I don’t know him well, but Taylor kept telling me about his adventures. Moving out west to work. Travelling, travelling, travelling. In my mind he was the polar opposite to the rest of his family, farm folk, who never went anywhere. He was in Australia, he was here, he was there, and finally he was trekking in Nepal.

The reports from Nepal continued to be horrible. Thousands and thousands of people dead. Unknown numbers missing. Avalanches wiping out base camps. Where was Jonathan?

Finally news came that he was last heard from in Annapurna region. Searches on google maps, looking at the earthquake boundaries… maybe he’s okay. It doesn’t seem to be affecting that area.

After a week they find out he was in Annapurna. The earthquake missed them. They didn’t know about it for two days. It took them five days to trek out to internet access. They were safe.

But that doesn’t alleviate the other part of my despondency. I stopped being weepy, but I’m still devastated about Kathmandu and other parts of Nepal.

I realized that they don’t need to get off their knees and do something. They can keep praying. We need to get off ours and help. In whichever way we can.