An exciting few days

WOW! I have a true understanding of the meaning of overwhelmed. As many of you have heard, our area had a pretty big quake Monday. It happened about 2:30 am, (est). It was our first experience with this type of disaster. Our city is only about 45 minutes away from the epicenter. Kenan was still at school when it hit. His school is less than 30 minutes away, so suffered some damage. He felt the tremors as he was walking with friends and immediately had them go to the soccer field. He then helped with younger kids – calming them and helping them down stairs. While he was worried, he wanted to be a blessing to those who might have been even more afraid. Trish was at home with a study group. They went outside as well. Trish even went out in slippers. She was also able to help a new, foreign mom who had just moved here and had no Chinese and whose husband was out. Mike was teaching. His first impression was the rumble of a heavily-loaded train. It was only when he saw the national teacher jump out that he realized the magnitude. The students were herded outside to an open field. Mike had three young girls clinging to him – they probably felt safe as he was the biggest person around. After intial panic and crying, the students settled down and the school leaders talked to them. An aftershock hit and caused a slight panic, but order was soon restored. Phone service was disrupted, so no communication between our family was possible. We were finally able to get text messages through. Because of the heavy traffic, getting home and back together didn’t occur for some time. Our city is a city of 8 million and it looked as if everyone of them was outside. Because of the high number of tall buildings, many were a little unsure of safety. As we reunited, we also were outside. In a sense, it was like a huge block party – without as much fun! We had friends in town whose hotel was damaged, so they came over. We had gone back in to get a few things – including food and Blaze. A little after 8, we were allowed back in but cautioned to return back out if we felt shaking. Our friends stayed with us. Inside, we noticed some small cracks as well as a few shaken, fallen, items. But we have electricity and water.Know and be assured that we are safe. Here are a few prayer requests:There have been many deaths – most news will tell of this. Pray for the families and those still trapped.After disasters, people are open to the Gospel. Pray for these opportunities.Our teammates are out. They are safe but may face landslides as they return.

The gas remained off most of Tuesday. Since we had friends staying with us, we used our outdoor grill for cooking. Many places/stores remain close - or sold out - even three days later.

Mike went with some friends to an area that was close to the damage. This city's hospitals were the closest to bring the survivors. Because of the number of schools that collapsed, the halls, rooms and outside areas had schoolchildren as well as the elderly and others. I talked to several patients. None of them had complete families. Some were missing, others were known fatalities. Because I gravitate to children, listening and holding hands ended up being very emotionally draining. The boy I spent the most time with was out in the hall. he had lost a leg and his father and was in constant pain. Another girl had been hit in the head and could hardly see while they were attemping to see if they could save her hand. One that was very difficult was a 15 year old girl who had been trapped with classmates who didn't survive.

I don't want to burden you with stories. This was the first time I had ever been involved with anything even close to this. Continue to lift up medical personel and those impacted by the quake.