Volume 29, No.18                                     
May 2, 2004

Volume 29, No.17
April 25, 2004

Shaken To the Core

   Most people know about the 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco, but few realize it was fire that posed the greatest danger to the stricken city.

   Early on April 18th, firefighters lay exhausted after a blaze at a cannery the night before.  The Daily News was set to carry an article about the $10,000 residents had raised for victims of an earthquake in Taiwan, and the same article described  how a similar disaster would be handled in San Francisco.  Then it happened.

   At 5:13 a.m., a huge tremor reduced much of San Francisco to rubble in just 48 seconds.  Smaller quakes had hit the city before so most buildings were made of wood because it withstood shaking much better than brick.  But that meant ruptured gas lines, overturned lanterns and toppled kitchen stoves suddenly became deadly threats.

   More than 50 fires raged amid the ruin right after the quake.  Firefighters couldn’t quench them because the city’s water lines were broken. But amid the chaos, sacrifice and selflessness saved the day.

   With flames advancing on the Post Office, fearless workers beat out the smaller fires with wet mail sacks.  Once the danger was past, they feverishly sorted tons of mail from survivors who scrawled notes to family members on everything from boards and newspapers to white shirts.  Each note with a legible address was sent, no stamp needed.

   At the Daily News, workers were joined by colleagues from four rival papers who bypassed bosses and helped put out vital information on where to find food, shelter and loved ones. Other volunteers protected  the rail station by carting water from the Bay three blocks away.  That kept open an essential pipeline for food, clothing, blankets and medicine, plus 300,000 refugees who traveled free.

   Though the steel and concrete San Francisco Mint was fireproof on the outside, searing heat blew out the windows and torched the interior.  Employees hauled water from a nearby cistern and saved all the money.  Bank president Charles Crocker emptied his vaults and loaded the cash onto ships that sailed to the middle of San Francisco Bay until the fires were out, ensuring survivors could withdraw badly-needed funds.

   And Alice Eastwood, a curator at the California Academy of Sciences, let her own house burn so she could save many treasured, irreplaceable plants.  All she had after the fire was the dress she wore.  

   We, too, need to know what to save and what to let go when faced with heartache and upheaval that shakes our lives to the very core.  And often, it’s not the initial turmoil that does us in, it’s the persistent fires of pain, bitterness and resentment that do the damage.  
   We’re all vulnerable to those inner earthquakes of sin and failure. “[So] if another Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path.  And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.” (Gal. 6:1-2)  Be compassionate, free from pride, and fully prepared.

   And when we see the warning signs of sin that inevitably precede The Big One, rather than simply trying to become more adaptable, let’s take the hint and get out of the area because — once things have been turned upside down — we often don’t have the resources to handle the aftermath. That’s why the church is so vital.

   When everything’s reduced to ruin, we need Christians, and sometimes even other churches, who will put aside petty rivalries and stand with us to beat back the flames of failure, then help us get the word out that we’re survivors, thanks to the grace and forgiveness of God.  We need brothers and sisters to keep open a conduit of Christ’s nourishment, warmth, and healing; to help us get to a place of safety and security, without expecting we’ll be able to pay our way.
 
  Like the Mint, our hearts are most vulnerable from the inside.  When disaster looms, we need support to protect the valuable contents so we can draw on those resources once the crisis is past.  Our church must be a source of hope, help and healing so that, when some of us are shaken, others will be stirred.

By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the Followers of Christ congregation in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.  Reprint at will in not-for-profit publications.  To subscribe, contact sgamble@bfree.on.ca