Yamagata, earthquake and memorial Service

This is a set of photos from our trip to Yamagata, for my grandparent's memorial service(法事). Within the first hours of our arrival at a train station, the Tohoku earthquake hit this snowy village. We arrived at my aunt's house after stopping for a soba lunch. I was showing my husband how to pray at my family's altar, when we felt a big shaking in a room. It was the first time my American husband felt the earth moving. I told him "This is an earthquake, it'll probably stop soon." But it wouldn't. The room itself started to feel too wobbly to feel safe. Quickly we decided to go outside, and we crouched in the middle of the road in front of the house. The sky was in grayish orange, surrounded by the walls of snow. A surreal moment. That night, we managed to have a feast with our family in an intimate candle lit setting. Luckily they had oil stoves. I felt warm inside out. While I slept, I tossed and turned the feeling between a threat of the aftershock and optimism. The next day, we carried on holding the memorial service for my grandparents, despite the loss of power. My aunts was worrying about the dinner being served cold, among other things.

​This March will mark the 10th anniversary of Tohoku earthquake and Tsunami. There has been many loss and suffering, especially near Fukushima nuclear power plant.
With the cost of disaster, we were reminded that we are yet a part of the nature, and we can’t ignore that fact when we want to design our future. Since the earthquake, I’ve attended lectures within the topic, such as safecast and disaster preparedness. May our future innovation bring a harmonious world. - 2/23/2021

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