Dear Friends,

We very much appreciate your concern and your prayers. My information is only for the first 48 hours although now it is almost 3 days. Up until that time we had heard of no deaths of our brothers, but brothers’ homes have been …completely lost. At the same time, roads and many airports are closed, trains not running, telephone lines are cut, making communication very difficult and so it is proving extremely difficult to locate and contact family and friends. The reason for my not having the latest news is that yesterday afternoon Yoshihiro, my husband, left to go up north and travel any way he could to get to the brothers in Sendai. I have not heard from him today.

Usually JWs are the first in with relief and then other organizations come in with help; no one coordinates it and the government sits back and does precious little. This time, however, is completely different. The government took control and made saving lives the priority for the first 3 days or so. Next, they will see to food/water/blankets, then living conditions and toilets, and after that restoration.

Any relief organizations that want to go into the worst areas must get permission from high government offices (which were closed for that purpose over the weekend) and hopefully we will get that permission today, if Jehovah wills it. Many trucks have taken off for the worst hit areas but how far they can go, personally I don’t know. On the bright side, the fact that the government is handling things means that we can concentrate on providing comfort and spiritual encouragement and it seems that this is the way the GB wants us to think for now. Our Service Department worked right through the weekend and 4 brothers from the department are now up north meeting with the relief committees. I will know more when Yoshihiro gets back; if and when he does. (More major earthquakes are expected.)

In Bethel, no one was hurt. I was on the 12th floor and I went and stood in the doorway and clung to the doorpost. Even so, I could not stand and had to sit on the floor. The earthquake seemed to go on endlessly and I could hear things falling and it seemed impossible for the building to take much more. The shaking seemed relentless. I was praying but I can’t remember what I was praying for; probably for forgiveness.

There are always tremors that follow and a few of us got together near the elevator because that’s where there is most space. Brothers soon came up, first to check for fires, then extent of damage and then 2 brothers came up and forced the elevator doors open and climbed in on top of the elevators. We asked them whether we would be better going to lower floors as the shaking was far milder there. They said definitely No because the lower part of the building is not made to sway as much as the upper floors. Therefore, the upper floors are safer. (Huh??) They also said to stay near the elevators because elevator wells are very solidly constructed. Once they were inside the elevator wells, on top of the elevators, we had our second big quake but they stayed absolutely calm. Maybe their faith is stronger than ours. Milder tremors continued with bigger ones now and again for 2 days. Today they are fewer. A few miles from Bethel, 3 plates meet and it is reasonable to think that the recent earthquake up north will have put some new pressure on these plates.

In times like these, Jehovah helps us to get things in proportion and see clearly that he has given us life once and he can give it to us again. We are but a mist appearing for a little while. Also, things lose their value.

The only damage I have heard of to our buildings is that some of the ceiling in the Dining Room came down and the joints between the buildings are damaged. In Japan, buildings like ours are built in separate blocks although they appear as one building. The reason for this construction is so that in earthquakes the buildings can move against each other, up and down and to and fro. Anyway, the cement joints cracked and bits of concrete fell. All this is minor damage.

Of course, for the brothers in the worst hit areas it is a terrible and unforgettable experience. The tendency is to sleep fully dressed for months after, even keeping shoes on. Then there is the reliving of the terror over and over again with certain sounds or smells causing flash-backs. Many of our brothers and sisters have to live with this.

From the beginning of March, we started our special meetings with TOs. Mid-March to the first week in May we are holding KM schools. However, some assembles, SADs, and schools have been cancelled or postponed. In this connection, many RBC brothers will probably be going to disaster areas for building so all this has to be organized. It is all a huge project and your prayers will help. Thank you for them.

The CO for Sendai area could not contact the branch until Saturday morning (the earthquake was Friday afternoon). It was a sad call because he was doing his best to check up on the brothers in his circuit but was unable to convey much information. The saddest thing, though, was his wife had gone on a Bible study with a sister on Friday afternoon and he had not heard from her since and had no idea where she was. Then on Sunday morning I heard that the wife had appeared at 6 pm Saturday evening. She had been in a car and the police had stopped all traffic. So she had waited and waited in the car until permission to move was granted. It must have been a tremendous relief to both of them when they met up. This is so understandable. How often do TOs and their wives know where they are going when they go on RVs and Bible studies? How often do others in the congregation know where and when other publishers are conducting studies? No doubt we will hear many more stories like this yet.

Well, I am sorry that I do not have anything much in the way of information. The Bethelites have been amazing as a common disaster has brought us closer together. Our brothers and sisters love us far more than we realise. They are there for us although we are not always conscious of it. We have so much to thank Jehovah for.

Anita was on a train when the quake struck. Happily, it had pulled into a station and wasn’t moving. She said it felt like the train was dancing on the rails. Eventually, the passengers were told to get off. It took her 5 hours to get home, mostly walking. So she is safe too.

My apologies for writing such a one-sided letter. As the righteous ones’ prayers have much power, we are relying on you all at this time.

Very warm love to you,

Rosemary