In my thoughts...

Last night a friend sent me a text message that Peru had been hit by an earthquake, but it wasn't until today that I was able to get much information.

It turns out that Pisco, south of Lima, was the hardest hit.

I spent my last 2 nights in Peru, in Pisco.

Now, it's 70% gone, with over 200 dead, and an impassable highway between it and Lima, or aid.This marina was only a few minutes from Pisco. I didn't take any pictures of the town, because it was, then, just an ordinary Peruvian town. Now, I can't recognize it.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americas/08/16/peru.earthquake/index.html#cnnSTCVideo

This 8.0 earthquake would be devastating anywhere, but especially in a 3rd world country, in a very poverty-stricken area. I don't know if any modern buildings could withstand this strength of earthquake, but most of the houses I saw in Pisco are straw and mud. 60 percent of Peruvians live on a dollar a day or less...this kind of poverty is difficult, if not impossible, to imagine if you got a lucky roll of the dice and were born in the US. Adding an immense natural disaster to the equation paints a bleak picture.

Every year, this time of year, my school does the Combined Charities campaign, which I run-we can make one-time donations or monthly withdrawals from our paychecks for all types of charities. I know what I will be donating to...my heart goes out to Peru.

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/impact/
My birthday is tomorrow....if you were planning on getting something and haven't gotten around to it yet, I'd be touched if you donated to a worthy cause, because I sure don't need any stuff. I have a roof over my head, food in the fridge, electricity and running water. It's easy to forget that the rest of the world doesn't live this way.