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PAGE 8. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1998.
Letter from Japan
Good advice means diddly
when reality shakes you up
Editor's note — Carrie Fortune
of Be!grave has been teaching in
Japan for two and a half years.
having written to The Citizen upon
her arrival, Carrie, who will be
returning home this fall has
submitted two more articles telling
about her life in the east.
Stay calm. Don't panic. Move
away from large objects. Head for
the exits if possible; if not, get
under a table. Remember what
you've been taught and act
accordingly.
All sound advice but it doesn't
mean 'diddly' when the ground is
shifting under your feet and you
haven't been drinking.
My first real earthquake was a
brief but memorable experience. It
lasted no more than 10 seconds but
showed that I and my co-workers
are perfect examples of what not to
do during an earthquake.
We thought we were prepared. In
recent years, there has been a great
deal of seismic activity in Japan,
and since the Kobe earthquake, a
lot of discussion on what to do
during a quake.
For those who aren't familiar
with the Kobe quake - a brief
history. In 1995 an'earthquake
measuring over seven on the
Continued from page 4
other is a thank you for the tutor we
presently have for our youngest
daughter. Her tutor wishes to
remain anonymous. I wish I could
hold up a picture and let you know
who she is, and thank her for the
wonderful job she is doing. Our
daughter has improved so much,
not just academically, but her self
esteem has risen to a point where
she actually has some confidence in
what she is doing.
Her tutor is just a normal woman
who works full time everyday, but
has some spare time on her hands,
as her children are getting a little
older. She read about the
Literacy/Numeracy Project, and
thought that it was something she
was interested in as she liked
reading in her spare time. All you
need is about one hour per week to
spend with someone, either a child
or adult, who is having difficulty
with reading, writing or
mathematics.
You don't have to be a scholar or
a teacher, but just someone who
would like to help someone else.
They give you materials, and they
offer training sessions. You are
one-on-one during tutoring, but you
are not alone. They are always
there to support and help you.
Presently they have over 60
children working with tutors, and
about 30 adults as well. They have
a very long waiting list (with our
second daughter being one of them)
of people who need help. Trained
tutors who are not volunteers are
expensive, and most people,
including us, cannot afford the
luxury.
Our daughter's tutor is wonderful.
She sometimes spends time playing
educational games with her. There
are also baking nights, where our
daughter reads the directions, and
helps with the whole process,
including the taste-testing! She
gives small amounts of work to
take home, nothing overwhelming,
Richter scale levelled huge sections
of Kobe and lulled more than 6,000
people. Kobe is and was built on
sand and reclaimed land. This
meant that during the quake the
land was literally sifted then mixed
with water. The buildings on that
land simply collapsed.
Fortunately, the earthquake I
experienced was short in duration,
measured 5.6 and occurred in an
area built on nice, blessedly solid
bedrock. Despite everything we'd
been told, however, not one of my
co-workers did what we were
supposed to do.
I surprised myself by remaining
relatively calm. When the
earthquake began, I was standing in
front of a large filing cabinet that
had been known to fall over when
the ground wasn't shaking. When
the earthquake began my first
thought was, "Oh this is an
earthquake."
A brilliant thought, I know.
My second thought was, "This
filing cabinet might fall over; I
should move."
Yet another brilliant idea.
I put the file I was holding away
(Duh!), took two steps to the side
and simply stood there. This isn't
exactly what you're supposed to do.
and our daughter seems more
anxious to complete it than her
homework from school. She just
wants to please the person who
cares so much about seeing her
succeed.
To our daughter, this is someone
who wants to help, not someone
who is expected to help, like
teachers and parents. If our
daughter in Grade 4 does not find a
tutor soon, we don't know what will
happen.
Education is like-a house. If the
foundation is not strong enough,
the house will never hold up, and
will come tumbling down. Math
and English are a person's
foundation, and must be secured as
soon as is possible in a child's life.
As for adults, sometimes it
makes the difference whether they
can secure a job or not, if they don't
have the skills to fill out some' of
the paperwork necessary.
If you have ever been helped by a
volunteer, just remember how it felt
to haye someone do something for
you because they wanted to help. A
lot of people want to help charities,
but cannot afford the financial
outlay. This is something you can
do, that won't cost you a cent. It is a
caring and compassionate gesture.
On those cold winter nights, just
imagine the warm feeling of
spending an hour or more per week
with someone who can use your
help.
If you can help with this
program,' please contact Ann
Heeney or Heather Robinet at 519-
482-7948. Even if this letter doesn't
result in a tutor for our daughter, I
hope this will help find someone
else a tutor. It can make all the
difference in the world to someone
in need.
Thanks to the Literacy &
Numeracy Project, to all thc new
tutors, and especially to the ones
we have already!
K.S.
Hensall.
You're supposed to move away
from large objects immediately,
then get out of the building or get
under a table in order to protect
yourself.
Oops. I kind of forgot that part.
I did, however, react better than
some of my co-workers. One
teacher reacted by clutching at the
wall behind him in what appeared
to be the hope that it would make
the floor stop moving. His eyes
became so large I thought they
would pop out of his head. His face
turned milk white and he continued
to press himself against the wall
even after the quake ended.
Another teacher had a death grip
on a table and began sending some
rather interesting messages to God.
Yet another teacher, who was in
the bathroom at the time of the
quake, informed us later that,
contrary to popular opinion, you do
not lose control of bodily functions
when absolutely terrified. They
simply cease.
While there was no damage and
no one was hurt, it did manage to
shake everyone up. It also gave
everyone something to talk about
for days. We've had some minor
quakes since but no one got
excited. Usually they just annoyed
people as the quakes occurred at 3
a.m. with just enough force to wake
you, but not enough to do any
damage.
So with all the warnings, plus the
personal experience, will I be ready
for the next earthquake? Not likely.
An eye on nature
It was a glorious day for the annual Fall Colour Tour at
Wawanosh Nature Centre on Sunday. Two participants
check the river for some water life before continuing on
their tour of the trails. Horse drawn wagon rides were
enjoyed by many, while others chose to commune with
nature on their own. (Ashley Gropp photo)
Writer commends
literacy project