Deep in dream land early Tuesday morning, I did not anticipate being shaken awake by an earthquake. I felt one large jolt that moved the bed under me and heard a loud thud, as if something had fallen. Then, I waited, ears tuned to the world now still night around me. My son was curled up next to me, sound asleep. His sister was fast asleep on the floor. My brain tried to sort out what had just transpired and quickly wondered, “Was that an earthquake?” Sure enough, after a couple failed attempts to find any mention of one in my area on the “live” earthquake tracker sites, I discovered multiple tweets about it. Social media was on it!
I wandered out to the living room to check on my husband (our bed is broken, so I am using our daughter’s twin-size cot and he is sleeping on our love seat.) He, too, had been woken up by the boom but thought something in the condo above us had fallen over. I told him there had been an earthquake and rattled as I was, no pun intended, I sat with him for a short while before venturing back to bed myself.
It was not a huge earthquake but it got everyone in a tizzy about “the big one” they have been warning of for several years now in our area. This, in turn, brought me back to the last time I recall experiencing an earthquake. I have been around during others, but did not feel them. The last one I could describe to you in detail took place on February 28, 2001, when I was fourteen.
Our teacher was sharing Dante’s Peak with us in science class. I remember before she started the movie warning in her thick Texan accent that there was a bit of cussin’. My classmates laughed, thinking she had said, “kissing,” wondering what the big deal was. She clarified, but I doubt many were phased by a bit of swearing either. The bigger point of all this is to point out we were watching a movie featuring earthquakes and a volcanic eruption. I was attending a small Christian school situated in Tacoma, Washington. From here, you could see Mount Rainier like a painting across the sky. It was beautiful, but it is also a volcano. I am not overly fond of disaster movies, so I was glad when second period let out and I went downstairs to my next class.
I loved art. Not only was it something I somewhat excelled at, I had a great teacher, and my mother was her assistant. My little brother was upstairs in the resource room. In another part of the school, a separate building, my father the high-school Bible teacher, was going about his business as well. (With parents who teach, school as often been a family affair.) I am uncertain how far into class we were when time stood still. Everything happened in a matter of seconds, but I see it in my memories as if I was moving through molasses.
I was turned around, talking to someone at the long table behind mine, when a low rumble began. Then, I turned back to the front of the room to see my teacher run out of the back room shouting, “Earthquake!” Having had earthquake drills, I promptly dropped my art work and dove under my table. My mother followed the teacher, wide-eyed, saw everyone under the desks, and took shelter herself. It was strange to feel the earth beneath me lurching, and trembling violently. I gripped the leg of the table, frightened I’m sure. Just as things began to die down, and before the all-clear bell rang, our teacher jumped out from her hiding place and told us to go out to the field. Our room opened up onto the large field, where we were all to congregate and regroup after such an event. I was relieved to see my brother and father were also okay.
In the days, even hours, after the earthquake, we learned all the details. According to Wikipedia it was, “One of the largest recorded earthquakes in Washington state history, it measured 6.8 on the moment magnitude scale and lasted approximately 45 seconds.” You can read more about the Nisqually Earthquake of 2001 here. I won’t bore you with going into the technical detail that they better describe on external sites. It was sure a big deal around there! This was what an earthquake was in my brain and I was relieved to not feel any of the aftershocks (my brother did), nor experience a volcanic eruption while still living there. I did get to visit Mount Rainier after the earthquake, and thankfully I did not see Pierce Brosnan during said visit. I have also been grateful to not have felt any earth-quaking moments until yesterday.
So, whether or not “the big one” occurs “any day now“* as some media outlets are warning, I am doing best to stay calm. I taught my kids what to do if there is an earthquake and now I just live my life as usual, praying that God will continue to protect us. The earthquake that occurred in the wee hours of Tuesday morning was smaller and shorter than the one I last witnessed, but it got my attention. Maybe it was a warning, maybe not. Some things you cannot prepare for, and some things you can. I think in this instance, it is better to err on the side of caution and pick up a few emergency supplies, especially with kiddos to consider. I would rather be prepared for a disaster that never occurs than unprepared.
Now, back to some diversion in the form a movie, while I put my feet up and rest a very sore toe!
* CBS SF Bay Area – “USGS Scientist: Major Quake On Hayward Fault Expected ‘Any Day Now’,” July 21, 2015
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