The Zen of Disaster
A fire that started around midnight in Imizamo Yethu (Xhosa, meaning “Our Efforts” and commonly known as Mandela Park) Informal Settlement, Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa has destroyed thousands of homes and left thousands homeless and destitute.
Thanks to www.sullivanphotography.org for the brilliant photograph.
This is what the residents experienced - a nightmarish hellfire, watching their entire life possessions being destroyed by raging fire; children with no schoolbooks, uniforms, parents with no legal documentation; everything consumed by fire.
If anything can plunge the human psyche into utter depression it is this event, but the people and the City of Cape Town rallied around with donations of food and clothing, disaster relief was on the scene the next day with accommodation, water and began clearing the burnt out site.
Perhaps in our own small disasters we should meditate on the millions of struggling, ordinary people around the world; their lives devastated by war, natural and physical tragedy and use the tools in My Mood Kit to find a balance and perspective in our own small lives.
Namaste!
