Tsunami WARNING canceled!

Everyday Ev and I have a usual routine. We watch the show "Price is Right" at 10 am. While I am loading something for work, I will come in with Ev and we play against each other to see who would "win'" as if we are really on the show. We enjoy bidding on the showcase showdown to see just how close we get.Its just something we have fun doing everyday; But something we dont do everyday is wake up to the news report saying that American Samoa had an 8.3 magnitude earthquake then hearing you (Hawaii) is being warned about a Tsunami. . I'm thinking in my head, Tsunami=BIG WAVE. Wait I live less than a half a mile from the Ocean...CRAP! No wonder why 72 hour kits are important! I wouldn't say too much ran through my mind, I'm not sure why, but I wasn't too worried about us in Hawaii. Very sad for the people in Samoa and my heart goes out to them and their current situation. This earthquake triggers tsunami which threatens Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and New Zealand. Now that I think about it, I didnt think much of it. I just went about the rest of my day. We were told we would see effects of a Tsunami at about 1:11pm, luckily around noon the WARNING was called off and we were just told to stay out of the water from Noon until 7:30 pm because there were some smaller effects, unusual current changes and sea level changes etc as an effect of the Earthquake in American Samoa. There were 14 earthquakes(aftershocks) after the main big one with the magnitude of about 4.5. As of 10pm Tuesday night 29 September there were 90 people declared dead. President Barrack Obama has declared American Samoa a disaster area. Some estimates said the tsunami waves reached twenty-feet. The surge came fast.By the time they got the first warning the first waves had hit already, destroying homes. Later, my brother Josh called me and we were talking about what had happened and he said,"where would you go?" I looked at Ev and said," Where would we go?!?" Ev simply said,"to higher ground, to the mountains." This reminded me of the talk given by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, in November 2005, after the tsunami that hit off the coast of Indonesia. This talk is titled "Journey to Higher Ground". I cant help but make the connection of yet another natural disaster to the Gospel, not that the Gospel has anything to do with the cause of the natural disaster, but as an outsider looking in I see how applicable the truths of Elder Wirthlin's talk become a reality, yet his words were written over 4 years ago. The people of American Samoa had no warning. By the time the first warning was given the first 20 ft wave had already hit and people had died. Much like our lives, there is often No Flashing Warning Light when "large waves/ripples in the current" and things are going to happen, when sadness or sorrow will occur, when death becomes an ugly reality, or even when lifes plans dont happen as we wish they would because bad things happen to good people its a fact. Unfortunately these things happen, but Journey to Higher Ground. Elder Wirthlin states,"We are faced with a choice. We can trust in our own strength, or we can journey to higher ground and come unto Christ." I appreciate very much the advice to Journey to Higher Ground because we all need to find refuge whether we wake up and theres a Tsunami warning or when life just stinks. There is only one way to get away from the stank of life and its to plow through it making your way to higher ground everyday leaving the bad and trying to take in the good along the way. I'm thinking I am grateful that we didn't actually have a Tsunami hit Hawaii but its taught me many things about being prepared and the importance of 72 hour kits and a whole lot of FAITH! I pray for the people of American Samoa that their faith can be strengthened, that their strength can be amplified and that together they can build each other up!

Journeying to Higher Ground