It's an...eartthquake!

Last evening, we had our first taste of an earthquake having lived in the Bay Area for almost 3 years. It occurred at 8pm, measuring 5.6 on the magnitude scale. It was considered a moderate one, but it was clearly felt as it only occurred 5.7 miles under the ground.

I had just strapped Shaayla in her car seat and started the car to pick up Suresh from his client's place. When I felt the violent rocking of the car from side to side, my first thought was something was terribly wrong with the car. I quickly pulled the handbrake, by which time, the shakes had subsided. Shaayla was not disturbed or affected at all.

Immediately, I received a call from Suresh who was with his colleagues. Suresh's first instinct had been to dash out of the building, but his 'more experienced' colleagues told him to duck under the table. It was nothing to them and they were all trained from young to duck under the table. After that the security guard told them to pack up and leave.

We made a brief stop at the PW Supermarket and saw that a few items had fallen off the shelves, but no serious damage at all.

In that split second when everything was shaking, it was perhaps more than a sign from a greater power up there. Everything that we hold so dear to our heart, our worldly possessions, all so nicely packed away, would have meant nothing. We were all subject to the mercy of the forces of nature, who, in it's unpredictable way, remind us of how vulnerable we really are. It was a humbling experience, to treasuring what we have taken for granted.