Crossroads Dispatches

Tsunami Help Campaign

Om Malik has an extensive list of tsunami relief organizations. I also liked this quote I lifted from his blog:

“Yesterday a Muslim man came to me and asked, ‘Father, can I enter the church? Can I stay here?’ I told him that we are all God’s children. You are welcome to stay here. It is only because of my cassock that you can make out that I am a Christian. I cannot look at you and think that.” Father A Anthony Swamy, parish priest at Lazarus Church, Chennai (via Aswath)

God, There Must Be A Better Way to Build Blog Traffic

For new readers, so my sense of humor isn't misunderstood, I'm being entirely facetious in my title. Yeah, I've never seen the likes of traffic pre-tsunami as I do now. And I am unindated with email, trackbacks, and comments. (My email priority is on folks that need information assistance related to regions I was at first-hand or regarding relief efforts.)

"How does it feel to be part of history?" asks the kindly older gentleman from Santa Rosa, California that offers his assistance on my flight home via Tokyo.

If truth be told and I had my choice, I'd prefer not to be part of history. Or at least not in this manner.

If it were just me involved (truly "it's just a flesh wound") it would be much easier to deal with, but I witnessed a lot of devastation and tragedy first-hand and that's what's racking my mind. I am particularly disheartened when I see people complaining about so-called "taxpayer-funded charity" and "what about causes closer to home" in response to the U.S. government's new pledge to contribute $350 million to the relief effort. But I expected as much because even as close as Bangkok, it all feels so distant and far removed from the bustle of our lives.

At the American Express office (brilliantly helpful) within the US Embassy (not brilliantly helpful) offices in Bangkok, I spoke to one Embassy employee whom had drifted into the office. Speaking with him, his feelings were transparently demonstrated in his tone, expressions and the way he chose his words. He had more symphathy for the Marines in the Philippines having their Christmas vacation being cut short than those who had their lives cut short. Obviously, this tragedy didn't hit home for him.

I know a lot of people reading this blog now don't know me from Adam, you found me on Google or perhaps on Jeff Jarvis' or Robert Scoble's blog. I don't usually write about tsunamis and disaster relief funding. And then there are my regular readers who must be muttering when is she going to write again about anything other than the tsunami (I'm being a bit facetious yet again).

In a lot of ways though, the subject matter isn't alien to what I typically write about. In an older post entitled "Ripple Effects" I wrote:

While writing my post a month ago on evangelism, I was thinking about what my blog really evangelizes. It probably really comes down to:

People Matter (and What Matters to People Sells). A Corollary: We're all kindred spirits and there's a core set of universal values that bond and motivate us.

So discussing the aftershocks of the tsunami isn't really all that off-base for this blog. And if you are just nodding your head yes-yes, but I've got to finish up this annual report or you're a skeptical marketer, you might want to know that no one hesitated to pick up their child in place of the cool, state-of-the-art camera as they ran for high ground. And no one hesitated to offer their tent to use as a makeshift stretcher for those with broken limbs. In fact, I know no one that cared one iota about where their stuff was seconds after the tsunami subsided and they realized they and their loved ones were really still alive. I lost my favorite (a sentimental pair from a lovely trip to Venice) sunglasses - they were whisked from my face as I'm barreling down with the water. I knew it was only a matter of time anyway before I'd lose them. Big whoop. Practicing Buddhist non-attachment isn't a bad practice. Actually more importantly is what the Thai Buddhists call metta or, the practice of loving-kindness. Like Hugh says somewhere (ummm, perhaps in the Hughtrain?), molecules (stuff) are secondary.

Although 9/11 may have had a life-altering effect on the American pysche, the Indian Ocean tsunami will have more of an international one. So many countries were directly affected, and because of the peak travel season timing so many international tourists (Americans were in the minority) were as well. I met travellers from Mexico, Indonesia, Singapore, India, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Britian, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Canada, Australia, and many more. And each of us personally witnessed the havoc to fellow travellers and Thais alike.

I think a lot of people failed to realize the magnitude of 9/11 on the fundamental values and psychographics of Americans. It too was a wake-up call. A re-minder. As I've mentioned previously, market research on teens and 'tweens shows that they are more interested in matters of faith and religion as a result of 9/11. And it's not just youngsters:

Like a lot of people these days, I'm a recovering secularist. Until September 11 I accepted the notion that as the world becomes richer and better educated, it becomes less religious. - David Brooks, "The Recovering Secularist", The Atlantic Monthly, March 2003

People ask me what are the lessons I take away from this - it's just too soon to have integrated all this into my life. Of course nothing will be normal again. There is more of a sense of urgency to do what's truly important and purposeful and cut through the clutter. If you stick around, you'll see the lessons weaved into the threads and texture of this blog and other places.

So I apologize to regular readers if this is getting a little old, but if you give it a chance, you will see this is relevant to your day-to-day life - and yes, even to your business life (if you think that's separate).

A Tsunami Survivor's Perspective: The Press and Blogs

Since the San Jose Mercury News story, I've done two more interviews with local TV stations thinking the attention might help to bring the story home to people in order to take action with the relief effort, but I'm done with press interviews at the moment.

Too much of what I want to say is getting edited out including things like thanking the people of Thailand or my suggestions for the US Embassy. Perhaps I don't have the proper media training, but all the attention seems to be what it felt like to be in the middle of the tsunami (the thrill part) which seems to me secondary to the larger story as a whole. I knew that going in, but I thought there were be a few seconds to slip in some important issues as well. In general there is not much airtime nor column-inches (although the original interview may take 30-60 minutes) to flesh out the real story behind the story.

The blog seems to be far more powerful way to communicate as I have control what I say. And there are four ways I think the blog has been useful as well:

1. Information exchange. I was able to help out with information on Maprao bungalows staff on Phi Phi and general state of Ko Jum to emailers that wrote me offline. I am still looking for more first-hand information on Ko Jum. If anyone knows first-hand knowledge about Seasons Bungalows staff at Ko Jum, please email me at crossroadsdispatches -at- gmail [dot] com. And another emailer asked if I could collect information on the island of Rodriguez near Mauritius since when you Google "Rodriguez" and "tsunami" you get this blog - so if you have it, please send it my way.

2. Change Agent. To say I've been unhappy with US Embassy and government would be an understatement, but I think writing about it (separate post) might (yup, I'm skeptical) be useful information to prevent similar situations from occuring in future.

3. Bringing Story Closer. I didn't realize on Monday when I wrote from Phuket Hospital that scale of the tsunami and numbers of people affected as I only got very sparse news at the time. I didn't intend to blog so much about it except I felt a responsibility to bring the story home. Perhaps many people, especially Americans, could not relate to an event halfway around the world I thought. You might be moved for a few minutes, but eventually you sip your morning coffee and go back to work and the daily routine. In order to help with the relief effort, I thought it was important to bring the story closer to home by sharing the my own story (regular readers already know me and could relate to me) and those I'd met. I'm particularly motivated to help the local people whom have often lost families, their homes and their livelihoods - even though most of the folks I've mentioned thus far are foreigners.

4. Public cc: Emails and Thank You's. Even friends that don't regularly read my blog are using to check up on progress as I don't have time for individual emails at times. And it will also be a good way to give public thanks to those who have been extremely generous, including the people and government of Thailand.

San Jose Mercury News Covers My Homecoming

I was interviewed by the San Jose Mercury News yesterday and the story is in today's issue.

I have a lot to write about and am back home now but having trouble posting as I need to keep my leg elevated and the desk/chair thing is not working for me. Ideally I'd need to be in bed and work from my laptop but I don't have wireless installed at home. I'm trying to think creatively but to no avail. If anyone lives in the Bay Area (I'm in San Jose) and can install a wireless router as soon as possible at my home, please contact me as soon as possible at crossroadsdispatches [at] gmail -dot- com or call 801-580-7119.

Update: I'm set on the wireless router! Thanks!

Going Home, More Tsunami Stories

As I wander the streets of Bangkok (again, I have to trek to get a temp passport and arrange flights back home), people stare at me. Even an able-bodied farung (Thai for foreigner and I found out at breakfast also the word for guava fruit) takes their lives into their own hands as a pedestrian. So to see someone in crutches (btw, my leg is badly cut up at the knee, not broken and was properly stitched at Phuket's international hospital "mass casualty zone") must be rare. Some people ask what happened? Others seem to intuitively guess.

One or two words usually suffice. "Ko Phi Phi" or "tsunami" usually does it.

I will be headed home Thursday, Dec 30th thanks to the great service of the American Express office for State Department workers at the U.S. Embassy - they even sent a courier to deliver the tickets to my hotel as it was obvious I'd not want to wait for two hours.

I continue to hear more personal accounts.

On the way to Phuket airport on the back of a pickup yesterday, an Aussie was relating his tale. He was staying at a high-rise in Patong Beach, Phuket when he felt the bed and walls shaking at approximately 8:15 a.m. His wife nudged him him to stop the clowning around.  He says, "It's not me."  He looked down at the hotel pool below and verified he just had experienced an earthquake.

But he didn't put two plus two together later that morning. He went out to get some postcards just as the tsunami was heading ashore. He grabbed onto a metal bench (he showed us the scratched up arms where he held on tight) and rode the wave - literally.

He was separated from his wife for two days. He calls up his sons again and they tell him, "Mum was on the tele." The Perth newstation had done a story on his wife looking for her missing husband. She had escaped to the hills in those last two days.

When we arrived at the airport I finally met his wife as she had been in the front seat of the pickup. She was a sweetheart in asking if there was anything we needed (they were able to go back a few days after the tidal wave to retrieve their luggage). And I finally had a new pair of underwear as the bathing suit was getting a little tired.

For every story of reunification there seems to be those with not so happy endings.

Unfortunately, the Bangkok Post has no photos on its website, but in the December 29 issue, there is a picture of a few people arriving in Bangkok on the C-130 I was on yesterday. It included the Swedish woman and Finnish boy I mentioned yesterday. Behind them was a British gentleman with his arm in a sling. He was seated in the plane next to the Swedish woman's four-year-old daughter. I remember he had been playing and entertaining her on the plane.

My boyfriend ran into him again today (I stayed in my hotel room much of today). He said he was on Khao Lak (one of the hardest hit areas) when the tsunami hit. He had climbed into a tall tree and held on for his life when the 25-foot wave hit Khao Lak. But he's never seen his wife since.

A lot of people had written and asked if there is anything you can do for me. Yes, this was a costly vacation, but nothing compared to the losses of so many others. If you'd like to do something, please contribute in any way you can to the tsunami disaster relief fund. And consider visiting Thailand or another affected area next year or perhaps place it high on your list-of-places-to-visit.

I have a lot more coming, and will be journaling all through my flight home. Thanks again for all the thoughtful emails and comments.

Humbled by Stories of Tsunami Survivors

Five minutes after the southern Asia tsunami hit I was just grateful to be alive, period. One hour later I was even more grateful even though all I had left were the clothes I was wearing (just a bathing suit) and although I could see straight through to my knee bone through an open wound. But in the grand scheme of things, that was all minor stuff really.

But it's funny how quickly you forget. I've been alternating between waves of humbleness and gratitude and self-pity, fatigue, and frustration. However in meeting more and more people directly involved in this mass tragedy, I've been moved by their stories of missing people in their party or how they separated from loved ones for 30-48 hours or being stranded hiding in the jungle on the highest hills for nearly two days. So, that last post was more on the whiny side of the pendulum.

I flew to Bangkok today (a necessity as we had to go to the US Embassy in person) via the Royal Thai Air Force. The C-130 was reserved for injured travelers and was about a quarter full of people in stretchers. The Swedish woman next to me had befriended a severely injured Finnish boy whom was traveling alone.

"He says you look just like his father," she said to my boyfriend (who's fine, by the way). He had lost his parents and brother in the tsunami.

Both of us were silent for quite some time after that.

So the fact that I haven't showered in 3 days or slept more than 8 hours in that same timeframe is apt to make me a bit cranky, but is really truly insignificant. (Actually I can be up at my free hotel room - the Thai government has been outstanding with helping foreigners, or farung in Thai - showering right now finally but decided to come up to the business office to blog instead they'd only be open another 30 minutes.)

And I still haven't gone into the entire story as yet as I just haven't had the bandwidth (literally - aside from the 30 minutes now, I've had only about 40 minutes of Internet time in last few days and I put a priority on contacting family, etc.). And until today the physical capacity to write more.

Someone forwarded me the NY Times piece on the tsunami and blogging, but if you were really in thick in the middle of this life-altering, surreal experience I'm not sure you'd be up to reporting it as yet. I managed to retreive my disposable camera (along with my sarong that I tossed into a small bag) when our boat came back to find us hours later and then transported us to the larger boat taking the injured to Phuket Hospital.

I wonder if blogging really is merely journalism (obviously not for me), but just didn't feel right somehow taking pictures of a floating hospital (except for the Asian doctor on his diving holiday voluntarily assisting with minimal supplies on this rescue, there was no medical attention available until about 11 hours after the tsunami hit), the Phuket hospital scene, or the people in stretchers on the C-130. Although that didn't stop the press. They were even hogging the free email terminals for patients at the Phuket hospital so they could dispatch their stories.

I'm going to need a bit more perspective to adequately relate this as I'm still in the middle of this. And I'll try my best, but the office is now closing.

Latest Tidal Wave Aftermath Update

I'm at the providencial hall (city hall) in Phuket, Thailand now and got my paperwork to fly to Bangkok, although I'm not sure I can fly yet as my leg so swollen I can't bend it and I can only walk with crutches. I was pretty positive yesterday but feeling less so right at the moment. Having trouble sorting out my Travelocity travel insurance, etc. And again in contrast to other embassies we will have to go to Bangkok to get US embassy help with an authorized letter (basically a temp passport) as they have to verify our citizenship (post 9/11 security measures).

Things are absolute madhouse here. Looks like a marketplace with tents and booths - but nothing is being sold just given away. Thousands of people here sorting through embassy stuff here. The government of Thailand and the people here have been absolutely wonderful providing free clothing, water, toiletries, food, accomodations, flights back to Bangkok and on and on. There are bulletin boards with lists of survivors here in addition to all the missing people photos and dead bodies photos (for help with identification). It reminds me that only two days ago I was just happy to just be alive. I didn't mention it in the last post as I was a bit loopy on painkillers...but I really did think I was going to die in that tidal wave flood. And we kept hearing rumors of another bigger wave coming and that we would need to get to the highest hill (at this point several people including myself couldn't walk).

I'm still concerned about a few friends on Ko Jum.  You are probably privy to more information than we are here as so much is just rumor and hearsay. Injured people are still be brought over from the islands.

I know this isn't making much sense as I'm still a bit out of sort, but I gotta go now as there are others needing to use the Net.

Slammed by Tidal Wave, But I'm OK

A lot of people heard about the devastation caused by the earthquake in Indonesia. I was on Phi Phi Don island off the Andaman coast of Thailand when the tidal wave hit. Not really up to posting the full story as yet, but here's some info I emailed to family members.

We were on a boat tour when the captain dramatically veered off course (we were headed to remote Bamboo Island) and was frantically talking on his cell phone. Their English was very poor so it was not clear what was going on. Long story short, we got on the beach but were too low when the tidal wave struck. It created a flash flood effect and I was in the middle of rapids containing debris, wood and all matter of building material. Ton Sai, the main village and also the pier, are completely leveled is the rumor.

I cut my knee up pretty bad and have trouble walking but nothing broken. I am fine considering the state of most of Phi Phi and the rest of the folks here in Phuket hospital.

Unfortunately, all of our stuff was on a bungalow hotel called Maprao about 40 minutes from where the boat landed so we were not able to go back and get any of our things.

Thus, currently nearly penniless, passport-less, travel insurance-less etc. at the moment. But at the hospital everything is free including email access. Unfortunately, the US embassy has not been very helpful in contrast to other embassies and we don't know much logistically in terms of loans, passports, retreiving our stuff, etc. The ambassador to Sweden personally visited all the Swedes (several were on our boat trip).

I appreciate all the concerned emails from readers but I will not be able to respond individually to emails for some time as free access (no money) may be difficult to obtain for a bit. But please be assured I am fine.

A Story of Peace and Goodwill

May the spirit of love be with you and all your loved ones. Here's a true story I wanted to share today:

It was Christmas Eve, 1914. After four months of fighting, more than a million men had perished in bloody conflict. The bodies of dead soldiers were scattered between the trenches of Europe, frozen in the snow. Belgian, German, French, British and Canadian troops were dug-in so close that they could easily exchange shouts.

Lt. Kurt Zehmisch, a German soldier who had been a schoolteacher in Leipzig, blew a two-fingered whistle toward the British trenches. To the delight of Zehmisch’s Saxon regiment, the Brits whistled back. Some of the Germans who had worked in England before the war shouted greetings across the battlefield in English.

On the Allied side, the Brits watched in amazement as candle-lit Christmas trees began to appear atop German trenches. The glowing trees soon appeared along the length of the German front.

Henry Williamson, a young soldier with the London Regiment wrote in his diary: “From the German parapet, a rich baritone voice had begun to sing a song I remembered my German nurse singing to me.... The grave and tender voice rose out of the frozen mist. It was all so strange... like being in another world — to which one had come through a nightmare.”

... “They finished their carol and we thought that we ought to retaliate,” another British soldier wrote, “So we sang The First Noël and when we finished, they all began clapping. And they struck up O Tannebaum and on it went... until we started up O Come All Ye Faithful [and] the Germans immediately joined in .... this was really a most extraordinary thing — two nations both singing the same carol in the middle of a war.”

Continue reading the remarkable story of The Christmas Truce.

The SuperAchiever's Secret: Giving

It's only a short walk along the beach to the Internet cafe (thank god for satellite) but a world away from the hammock at Relax Bay (aptly named) on the isle of Ko Lanta, Thailand. I finally dragged myself away as tomorrow I'm rather sure the isle of Ko Jum will definitely not have Internet service (but surprises never cease).

Books are a quick read out here (in other words, I didn't pack enough) and I picked up Wayne Dyer's book Real Magic at the book exchange.

In this, the season of giving, there are a few choice stories and quotes I'd like to share that has gotten me back to reflecting about purpose. This story was first recounted in a July 1991 issue of Success magazine entitled, "The Superachiever's Secret":

One day, Mehdi Fakharzadeh, Metropolitan Life's top agent, went to see a policyholder who suffered from heart disease and was filing a claim. There was no prospect of selling him more insurance. Most agents (striving for their goals) would have just handed the man a form and left. Not Mehdi, who had "surrendered to the process" of helping people. Mehdi filled out the form for him. When he found out the man also had policies with other insurers, he got forms from them, filled them out, and made sure the refunds came through.

The man pressed payment on Mehdi, which Mehdi politely declined. But a few days later, Mehdi received in the mail a list of 21 of the man's friends and relatives: names, dates of birth, number of children - with a personal introduction to each. Mehdi sold millions of dollars of insurance to them.

Sigh. I love that story.

Complete possession is proved only by giving. All you are unable to give possesses you. - Andre Gide

And I'll close with this poem snippet by Kahlil Gibran before I head on back to sip a mango shake.

And there are those who

have little and give it all.

These are the believers in life

and the bounty of life,

and their coffer is never empty.

There are those who

give with joy,

and that joy

is their reward.

And there are those who

give with pain,

and that pain

is their baptism.

And there are those who

give and know

not pain in their giving,

nor do they seek joy,

nor give

mindfulness of virtue;

they give as in yonder valley

the myrtle breathes

its fragrance into space,

through the hands

of such as these

God speaks,

and from behind their eyes

he smiles upon the Earth.