Thoughts On...
Back in the office... Again.... To those who think that each entry is too long or something like that, I'm sorry, but this is NOT an inane diary of, 'Oh, this is what happened today!!'. While events that occur daily will definitely have its place here, they are not the main focus. Too bad. Ha!
Checked my mail yesterday, and got a very interesting mail. One of my girlfriends asked me to help her out;
hi people ,
can you do me a favour n give me an opinion on the following...
"We must move on with life." This was often said to explain celebrating New Year, only one week after the tsunami disaster. While keeping in mind that New Year celebrations were rightly downplayed, do you think THIS is a fair reason to continue celebrations, esp so soon after such a catastrophy?
There are so may ways to repond to this question, and it struck me because it's a question that I never even considered. New Year's Eve and Day I spent out with friends ( stayed over at Chrystal's house) with nary a thought for what was going on in te tsunami-hit areas of South-East Asia. Our church did mention it during the service that evening and we had corporate prayer for it as well. However, it did not really occur to me that our celebrations of the New Year may have been, in a way, insensitive and inappropriate.
"We must move on with life." This is a valid statement in its own right, as it is not healthy nor desirable for us to dwell indefinitely on a particular event, be it a happy or sad one. People who cannot let go or move on eventually allow that event to swallow them up. However, as much as there is a need to 'move on', we must also recognise the need for people to grieve, and come to terms with what has occurred. Each person, unique as they are, needs time to deal with traumatic events. There are those who cannot cope with it and pretend that it does not exist, but that is just as bad as dwelling on it constantly.
Considering the fact that over the tsunamis have caused over 150,000 deaths in 11 nations, including our own, the tsunami has had far-reaching consequences for many people. Take a look at this site, and then think about the enormity of the disaster. The accurate word is disaster as, I do not believe that we have seen/experienced an event of the this scale in our life times, short as they are. Is a week in anyway sufficient to deal with 150,000 deaths? It seems ludicrous even to suggest that it is adequate. Even today, identification of all the deceased is far from complete. Many are still missing and presumed dead.
But again, for many of us, who have no real relation to the disaster, it is remote. We go 'Oh man, that's terrible!' when we see the pictures/videos of Phuket and Aceh, but we do not really have the depth of emotion that goes with it. Which is why people like me were able to celebrate New Year's without trepidation. One cannot expect that everyone will feel the same level of emotion. A person who has lost family or friends will feel much greater loss and empathy than a person who is further removed. Thus, one cannot expect the world to stop, and time to stop running because one has lost someone in the disaster.
Bearing this in mind, there is, as such, no straightforward answer. One cannot say, ' Yes, its a fair reason,' anymore than you can say it is not a fair reason. The best that one can hope for is personal sensitivity, to keep one's celebrations quiet in respect for those who maybe mourning. This is my personal view, you are welcome to disagree...
That's enough for today... Tata!!
Checked my mail yesterday, and got a very interesting mail. One of my girlfriends asked me to help her out;
hi people ,
can you do me a favour n give me an opinion on the following...
"We must move on with life." This was often said to explain celebrating New Year, only one week after the tsunami disaster. While keeping in mind that New Year celebrations were rightly downplayed, do you think THIS is a fair reason to continue celebrations, esp so soon after such a catastrophy?
There are so may ways to repond to this question, and it struck me because it's a question that I never even considered. New Year's Eve and Day I spent out with friends ( stayed over at Chrystal's house) with nary a thought for what was going on in te tsunami-hit areas of South-East Asia. Our church did mention it during the service that evening and we had corporate prayer for it as well. However, it did not really occur to me that our celebrations of the New Year may have been, in a way, insensitive and inappropriate.
"We must move on with life." This is a valid statement in its own right, as it is not healthy nor desirable for us to dwell indefinitely on a particular event, be it a happy or sad one. People who cannot let go or move on eventually allow that event to swallow them up. However, as much as there is a need to 'move on', we must also recognise the need for people to grieve, and come to terms with what has occurred. Each person, unique as they are, needs time to deal with traumatic events. There are those who cannot cope with it and pretend that it does not exist, but that is just as bad as dwelling on it constantly.
Considering the fact that over the tsunamis have caused over 150,000 deaths in 11 nations, including our own, the tsunami has had far-reaching consequences for many people. Take a look at this site, and then think about the enormity of the disaster. The accurate word is disaster as, I do not believe that we have seen/experienced an event of the this scale in our life times, short as they are. Is a week in anyway sufficient to deal with 150,000 deaths? It seems ludicrous even to suggest that it is adequate. Even today, identification of all the deceased is far from complete. Many are still missing and presumed dead.
But again, for many of us, who have no real relation to the disaster, it is remote. We go 'Oh man, that's terrible!' when we see the pictures/videos of Phuket and Aceh, but we do not really have the depth of emotion that goes with it. Which is why people like me were able to celebrate New Year's without trepidation. One cannot expect that everyone will feel the same level of emotion. A person who has lost family or friends will feel much greater loss and empathy than a person who is further removed. Thus, one cannot expect the world to stop, and time to stop running because one has lost someone in the disaster.
Bearing this in mind, there is, as such, no straightforward answer. One cannot say, ' Yes, its a fair reason,' anymore than you can say it is not a fair reason. The best that one can hope for is personal sensitivity, to keep one's celebrations quiet in respect for those who maybe mourning. This is my personal view, you are welcome to disagree...
That's enough for today... Tata!!
posted by butterflyblade at 1:43 PM
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