Thank you all for the kind words posted on this Forum; no place is as far from Santiago as Christchurch where we live, the antipodes of Spain, and this makes it specially touching to know that we are remembered.
The dramatic picture of the destroyed buildings and churches, and rescued people, is slowly fading but the real grieving and long road to recovery is very real. So many people lost their lives, so many lost their limbs, countless have lost their livehood, and a great many are traumatised. The suffering is ongoing as a week after the event many places still have no water or sanitation, no electricity. Many ongoing aftershocks.
We were violently shaken about in Christchurch, things were broken, our house will need repair. These are replaceable but we are still dealing with helping the overseas parents who have come to recover the bodies of their loved ones under the rubble, some may never be recovered. Many homes have to be torn down for safety and the contents lost as the tenants are not allowed to go in to recover them, no monetary handout can compensate for the loss of family treasures, personal letters, pictures, mementoes.
I had no idea that a Forum like this would have so many sympathetic responses from total strangers, long may this Forum continue. We are touched.
For those on the Camino, buen camino, spare a thought for those still suffering in Christchurch. The response from volunteers, Red Cross, have been fantastic but be assured any donation will be used properly and directly to assist victims.
Grandpa Joe in Christchurch
