Message from the Chancellor
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In my life three moments stand out as most unforgettable. I remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard the news on November 22, 1963, "President John F. Kennedy has been shot." Then on September 11, 2001 I remember standing in disbelief as I watched a live report on NHK and saw the second plane hit the second tower of the World Trade Center. These two tragedies were important to me because they shook my faith in America and the American way of life.
The third was March 11, 2011, when the worst earthquake and tsunami in the history of Japan claimed over 14,500 lives (and still over 11,000 missing) and left over 130,000 in evacuation centers (now up to 245,000+). After that quake Japan has had more than 515 quakes and aftershocks over M5.0 in a period of 50 days. I have lived through this ordeal along with my Japanese loved ones and friends.
I was tilling my small garden behind our house when the quake struck. I saw our house jumping and swaying from side to side. I saw tiles on the roof of a neighboring apartment building jumping up, dancing down the roof and falling to the parking lot. I experienced the greatest fear I have known in the five-minute ride of a lifetime. After that initial quake I experienced life without the usual lifelines of water, electricity and gas. The long pitch-dark nights, the constant aftershocks, the sense of loneliness brought on by lack of communication tools, and the constant concern about securing food and water really took its toll.
Once we got our utilities back I started to see how massive the disaster had been. On top of the two natural disasters, the problems at the atomic energy power plant seemed to cast an even larger shadow. We are now attempting to recover from this triple tragedy. In Hitachi this process will take time, but nothing like the time required for places north of us. There is actually a 4th tragedy now wreaking havoc, and that is the misinformation and rumors that are killing the markets for things from all over Japan, and even causing fear of Japanese and Japanese products abroad.
Even though I would have preferred not to have the experience, there are three things I have learned from it. I think I already knew them, but this experience has made that knowledge much more personal and vital.
First, I learned that the value of life is not in the possessions or positions we hold. The value of life is in life itself. I am thankful that I only lost things. My life and the lives of my loved ones were spared. I am thankful for life and appreciate just being able to live each day. What I used to think of as big problems (car trouble, noisy students, no change for the vending machine) now seem like what they really are...small inconveniences. I appreciate the little things in life much more now.
Second, I learned the value of others. Total strangers have been helping each other. My friends and family took on a whole new importance when I was unable to contact them for a number of days. I learned, or at least came to appreciate more, the value of having...and being...a good neighbor. I have believed and taught Jesus' second greatest commandment for many years, but now I realize even more how important it is to love my neighbor as myself.
Third, and this goes back to the first commandment that Jesus taught, I learned how important it is to love God with all my heart, soul, strength and mind. When I looked up from the garden and saw my house dancing, my first thought was "Oh God, please don't do this to me!" I have come to realize that God wasn't doing it to me. He has used this experience to teach me to trust him more. He is in control. Even if I die in a storm or an earthquake, or when I die in any other way, I know He loves me and will bring about good from my death to those left behind, and an eternity with Him for myself. You may ask "How do you know?" My answer is based on my faith in God that has been proven in my life countless times and in many ways. In the words of a song I learned when I was a child, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
May,2011
Jim D.Batten
