RHODYLIFE

I felt the ground move

Posted 11/12/20

My early life was spent traipsing across the country in a Volkswagen van with my dad who was suffering from the mental effects of World War II. It was an interesting life with many amazing experiences. The most memorable was the time we were parked high

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RHODYLIFE

I felt the ground move

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My early life was spent traipsing across the country in a Volkswagen van with my dad who was suffering from the mental effects of World War II. It was an interesting life with many amazing experiences. The most memorable was the time we were parked high in the mountains on a little mountain road. My dad abhorred traditional camping spots, and would forge his way into the back woods where nary another person would be. It was on a dark, rainy night that I fell asleep in the little hammock that was my resting spot above my parent's bed. I was awoken by an expansive sound as the ground shook and the van rocked back and forth, metal vibrating. My hammock swayed wildly and my inner soul almost exploded. I sincerely thought that it was the end of the world, and fear gripped me. After a few seconds, (that seemed like hours), the rumbling stopped, and life went on as before. It was my first experience with an earthquake, and a terrifying, memorable event.

My son, Francis, lives in “Silicon Valley,” California, known for earthquakes and wild fires. He has felt his share of earthquakes, but never one as strong as the one that shook my body and soul on that mountain top. His bookshelves and bureaus are all secured to the wall lest they fall over during an earthquake. His refrigerator has many compartments and shelves to protect the bottled and vulnerable groceries. All of the trees around his home that had the potential of crashing onto his roof have been cut down, replaced by shorter shrubs. He has learned how to creep into the crawl space under the house to turn off the utilities, and has an earthquake emergency kit with lanterns, blankets, food and other necessary supplies. He is ready for one! What he was not ready for was his house sinking. At first, little things became an annoyance. Windows wouldn’t shut tightly and the back door became misaligned and unable to be locked. He noticed that when his son played on the floor with a ball it would roll by itself down the corridor and would lodge itself under their bed. Then he noticed that if he looked at his dining room table, the lighting fixture was hanging straight, but the wall behind it seemed to slope down several inches and the family pictures that were hung there featured smiling faces at an angle. His house was sinking! Because a drought had plagued his area for years, the ground underneath his house featured dry dirt that shifted downward with each small earthquake. Not covered by homeowner’s insurance because it is from a naturally occurring event, he is now footing the bill to have his house jacked up and metal pilings inserted down to the bedrock. He has said it is just the cost of living in that area, and that most of his neighbors have had to similarly provide stability for their homes.

The most recent news is that Rhode Island has felt its very own earthquake on a scale of 3.6 to 4.2 depending upon the report. It came from the movement of rocks along a fault line, causing the ground to shake. What is so amazing to me is that it started more than six miles under the ocean. SIX MILES! That is as far as a person driving straight down into the ocean the length of a drive from the Warwick Beacon office to Rhode Island Hospital. I am so naïve in that I never realized the ocean had such depth.

Several people put postings about the earthquake on Facebook. One friend played Carole King’s song “I Feel the Earth Move.” Another friend played “Shake, Rattle and Roll.”

One person said “Earthquakes don’t kill people, the falling buildings kill people.” Another wrote “Whose FAULT is the earthquake?”

One Dairy Queen has this upon their marquee “Earthquake special! All shakes 25% off!” Someone wrote “Cows produce milkshakes during an earthquake.”

We are lucky that earthquakes here are mild and we are able to joke about it. Yes, we all felt the earth move!

life, matters

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