Let's take a moment to think about Japan

I'm sure by now the whole world has come to know about what is happening in Japan.

For the past days, for 2 hours after I wake up, I would be glued to the screen of the news channel and anxiously waiting for updates of the situation, hoping that things are better. And each day, there just seems to be more heart-wrenching news and images.

I do not have any family members in Japan who are directly affected. I do have a friend who lives in Tokyo, whom I blogged about some time back. As of the last time I got in touch with her 2 days ago, she is fine and that is a relief. At a time like this, no matter how close or not, you probably would not want anyone you know getting near a disaster area.

I was fortunate to be able to visit Japan last year, around this time of the year. In fact, it was 25 March 2010 to be exact. I was telling my husband that had it been this year, our trip would have been canceled. We were fortunate to have experienced the graciousness of the Japanese people and the beauty of the place. In fact we were very happy to have experienced snow, seeing Mount Fuji clearly and seeing the blooming of the sakura during our short 6 days trip there.

The strength and resilience of the Japanese people were repeated over and over again in newspaper reports on how the rest of the world is impressed with how they are coping. Indeed. I would have freaked out BIG time if I am facing a triple whammy like them now, lest to say stay calm.

It's depressing and very heartbreaking to see images of devastated homes over and over again. My heart goes out to them and with great admiration too, for the rescue workers as well as ground workers trying hard to fix problems at the nuclear plants.

There is little we can do to help them right now except to make a donation so that relief can go to them in the form of food, blankets, first aid and whatever they might need.

Wherever you are in the world, there is some form of channel for you to make your contribution.

I did it through Facebook. This is a cause led by American Red Cross. You can go to this link here.

You can also donate through Google over here.

Whatever religion you are, let's take a moment to say a little prayer for the people of Japan.