Thursday, November 22, 2007

Beyond a nightmare


As I drove home this evening to my family, I heard a report about the aftermath of the recent cyclones in Bangladesh. I heard how one mother held onto her 2 month old baby in the floods until the child was swept away from her. She found her dead body later that day.

Another man had lost his four children, his parents, his home and all his belongings. He sat, by his own description, on the road like a beggar, barely able to function. Just existing. If someone gave him food, he ate.

I tried to imagine the loss of these people. I couldn't. To say I would be lost without my family is an understatement. My life would be unrecognisable without them. They are what completes me. Hearing these stories, I could imagine myself reacting the same way and that brought home its reality, regardless of how far away across the world these people are. I'm sorry to say it was almost too much to contemplate, which is weak and selfish. Thousands of families over there have no choice.

The Disasters Emergency Committee are accepting donations here.