An enormous earthquake 7.7 Richter scale attack and triggered a huge tsunami in Mentawai, Sumatra, Indonesia on October 25, 2010, killed 449 people, injured 270 others seriously, and 142 lightly. Some 14,983 people were made homeless and forced to stay in emergency tents. The natural disasters also seriously damaged 517 houses, and mildly affected 204 others. (http://english.kompas.com/read/2010/11/01/16052910/Search.)
At least 64 people have been killed in the latest eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Merapi volcano – more than doubling the death toll since it became active again last week. Dozens are being treated for burns and respiratory problems after a gas cloud hit villages with even greater force than the previous eruptions. More than 100 people are now said to have been killed. An estimated 75,000 residents have been evacuated from the area. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11699945, 5 Nov 2010)
By Christian Hendra Limawan
When I heard the news, I was shocked by what was happening at that moment in my beloved country. There were at least three disasters in one week in Indonesia only last week. I felt guilty I could not do anything to help them. Thankfully my family was fine as they live in a different part where the disasters happened. At the same time, so many Indonesians are dying…
There is nothing eternal in this life. Everything will change. Even our own lives are not protected from forces outside of our control. Maybe now we live in very comfortable area. We got enough food, we got our residences to protect us from the weather, but on the contrary can you imagine what is happening with the victims? They lost their families, friends, properties, and their life is dependent on others’ aid. If we reflect about it, what have we been doing with our life here in the college? We complain about what we have here because we do not know how it feels to live in critical area such as in emergency shelter. What if those terrible disasters happened to us?
As a human being, people will feel sad and sorry when they hear that someone died. It is even worse when many people die, are injured, or get lost because of disaster. The victims are helpless; they are suffering and struggling to keep alive.
But just feeling sorry is not enough. What can we do? We can help them by giving spiritual support, praying for those who died and their family, for the rescue team and volunteers, those who are still lost. We can also participate in fundraising for the relief efforts, and contribute financially as well.
If you know that there are some people who really need help and you can help them, convince yourself to do it. Even if you think you can only do small things, maybe it means a lot for the victims. Do not feel doubt. Do real action to lessen their suffering.
VERITAS HADRIANUS 
