I’ve been sick this week. Came home on Tuesday after lunch and have stayed here since. I am getting better. It’s only been a doozie of a cold. Something that is responding to plenty of liquids and rest.

So I have been home more than normal. And still I have only seen a few items about the earthquake that hit north of here. I haven’t seen much because my day here does not include news. I don’t read a paper and I don’t watch TV. Sometimes the news is on in the dining hall, but I’ve learned to tune it out. So to get info on the quake, I tuned into the news at dinner and looked on the Internet.

You don’t have to see much to know the situation in Sichuan is terrible. When Mother Nature strikes, she can be devastating. Anywhere in the world. We all remember Katrina.

I was looking through a file of photos today. It reflects the traditional ways people here often try to protect themselves from danger.



Firecrackers scare evil spirits away.

Red fabric tied on new vehicles protects the vehicle from damage.

Door banners invite in goodness or perhaps they just declare the owners’ well wishes.


Mirrors above doors keep evil from entering once it sees its own reflection.

Gods on the doors protect the home and its occupants.

Four red papers, here in a new well area, represent the peoples’ wishes for happiness, success, peace…you know, the good things in life


Of course none of these traditional practices stopped the damage done during the 7.9 earthquake in Sichuan this past Monday.

What would?