how can i not be affected?

I feel like crying, but the tears don't seem to come out.

So hard to decribe the feeling, even though I was not directly affected by the disaster.

The tsunami first struck when we left for Myanmar, and when we heard about it from another missionary in Yangon, we thought he was joking. Who would believe an earthquake had struck Malaysia?

We still couldn't believe our eyes as we watched news from CNN and ABC, clips of people running to safety and the scope of destruction left by the giant waves. Later we found out Myanmar was not spared too. The smaller fishing villages on the coastal areas were also affected, claiming some 50 lives to date.

Even though internet was expensive, we still managed to find the means to send a group email out to our closest relatives and friends, hoping that a word from this land would send comfort to them. We couldn't afford to call back, that was too pricey. But my mum, she never feared that I was one of them. Maybe God put that peace in her heart.

I am still reeling from this, it's hard not to feel affected. My heart cries out for the families whose children were swept away by the waves, the little kids whose parents were washed away, and to those who are scarred by this disaster. I pray for God's comfort in this time of why's and if only's.