On Boxing Day, 2004, many people will recall waking up and hearing the news of the Indian Ocean tsunami. It was a tragic event that claimed over 250,000 lives across 14 different countries.
Some people may recall seeing images of the Hillsborough stadium disaster in 1989. This was a man-made tragedy in the UK which claimed the lives of 96 people.
The first disaster I became aware of, was the Aberfan disaster. This was a combined natural and man-made tragedy which killed nearly 150 people; 116 of whom were schoolchildren.
Human Beings are vulnerable creatures, we are made mostly of flesh bone and blood. We have no natural defences against fire, flood or crushing weight. If you think about it, this world is a dangerous place for us to live. However, we not only survive on this world; we thrive.
We thrive because we are not merely individuals; we are also social animals who live and work alongside others. We use our experiences and our intelligence, to utilise resources and create shelters to protect and secure ourselves from potential threats. These threats may be the cold, the wet, the heat, indeed all but the most extreme of weather.
Yet, disasters still happen.
As I have said, the first disaster I recall was the Aberfan disaster. I recall it not because I was involved in it;- I wasn’t. I recall it because it was the first disaster I watched on television news.
As I watched the grainy monochrome images on the screen, I recall my mother saying, ‘ Look at the people helping …’ . My attention was drawn to those people on the screen. They were climbing on the rumble, digging with hands and shovels. They were clearing debris and searching for survivors and, I guess, victims.
I do not know what made my mother say what she did. Perhaps it was something she had heard herself; perhaps her mother had said it to her, or maybe it was her attempt to draw my young mind away from the sad aspects of the disaster. Perhaps, also, it was an attempt to get me to focus on the hope and determination of the people, ordinary people, to help.
Her words have stayed with me, and I’d like to pass them on.
“Look for the people helping.”
Each time when you see reports of a disaster, look for the people helping. For it is the ways in which people help other people that will ensure we continue to survive in this world.
