I Have a Feeling R.E.M. Wrote a Song About This

The earth has thrown everyone for a loop lately with Haiti and now Chile.

In the U.S. when news of a natural disaster hits, people are usually asking How can I help?, rather than Why? And this little why has been plaguing Guatemala (or at least my little town) for quite a while now and hit critical mass yesterday.

When the terremoto rattled Haiti, everyone in town turned to their place of worship as a way to understand, cope, and hope. And Saturday morning when the record-breaking shake hit the chisme grapevine, it was déjà vu. Once again, my neighbors were flocking to their places of worship, but this time, something was different.

Local small talk, usually dominated by weather conditions, was now pushed aside by theories of the coming apocalypse-- with the leading theory being the complete destruction of Central America by the merging Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Excuse me?

Sure, I expect a little fear-- I mean, heck, we've had four tremors since I've been here (as well as thunderous volcanic booms that practically have you stopping, dropping, and rolling). But talk of the world coming to end? I don't know. I guess I'm still getting used to the whole idea of the culture being so influenced by religion.

*To all of you reading out there: keep all the families affected by the earthquakes (both in Haiti and Chile) in your thoughts. And think about donating some time or resources to organizations who are helping abroad!