The ripple effects/echoes of the quake are still hitting me here in Duluth, although I assume not literally. The fact that it is winter is haunting...knowing how quickly frostbite can set in. There is something so elemental about the images of people clustered around fires. In the modern era, it is, even for me (expecting increasing numbers of such events in the future), mildly terrifying. As the shock is wearing off and the reality is hitting the people who have survived, this time period must be particularly painful.
It is really important to remember that earthquakes can happen almost anywhere...as much as it would be reassuring to hope that they wouldn't happen "here" (wherever that might be for anyone!) I have experienced three mild earthquakes. Two were in the Champlain Valley (epicenter in the Adirondacks), and one was in New York City (epicenter in Westchester County). Even a minor shaking of the ground is extremely unsettling, emotionally. I really don't know how Californians can live with it...or how or when survivors of major quakes return to any kind of emotional normalcy. It might have been less traumatizing thousands of years ago, when there were fewer people and minimal infrastructures. Earlier peoples lived at ground level and were probably far more aware of the minute changes in the environment and animal life that signaled impending harsh natural events.
The word "quake" started me thinking of Quakers. This religious sect started in England in the 17th century, essentially in reaction to the outward trappings of the Church of England. After leaving New York City in 1990, I spent a few months at Pendle Hill, the Quaker study center outside Philadelphia. It was my first experience with silent meetings for worship, which took place every morning. There are no Anglican-style choirs and processions and clergy and liturgy. There are zero "distractions". Quakerism is about you and the Divine. You are encouraged to listen to the voice of the Spirit within you, and ideally you only stand to speak in meeting when you are genuinely led by the Spirit, which can be accompanied by physical shaking or trembling. I assumed this was only a metaphor until the morning when, sitting on a hard bench in the silence, I started to shake. I could feel that I needed to say something, but honestly, I wasn't sure what would come out until I stood up and opened my mouth. I don't remember what I said, but it was a turning point. Since then, finding my own spiritual truths has been the focus of my personal spiritual life and writing this blog...even as the C of E's choral evensong service remains my preferred spiritual practice when I can attend it.
But it makes me think, are earthquakes/volcanos/tsunamis/tornados/hurricanes oracular phenomena? Nature is always speaking to us, but in these singular events, is She opening up from her core to engage with us in a major way? Is She speaking truth from Her center? When human trappings collapse around us, what is audible in the silence? What are the echoes saying?
