Devastation

I have nothing of any value to say regarding the destruction recently visited upon South Asia by killer tsunamis, but want to light a candle, so to speak, for both the dead and the survivors.

I watched the news report on television last night while eating dinner, which was not good timing. The footage of endless rows of dead bodies, their limbs frozen in awkward positions by rigor mortis, and especially a hospital floor crammed with the bodies of children, was horrific to say the least. A man carried the stiff body of his young son upside down in a terribly unnatural way, and another wailed over the body of a child that lay in his lap.

It was rather annoying, in a distracted sort of way, to hear the reporter say something to the effect that people vacationing in Thailand for the holidays had their peaceful getaways disturbed. Though I understand the misfortune of that, the fact that entire families were wiped out in a seeming instant, and the livelihoods of whole villages decimated, makes disrupted vacations pale in comparison.

Lord have mercy on the survivors as they heal and go on. Provide residents with food, clean water, shelter, and protection against illness. I pray the world will respond adequately to help these our neighbors in great need.