Malu kita dengan orang Jepun


posted by Martinelli Hashim

3 comments

بِسْمِ اللَّـهِ الرَّحْمَـٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ


Kehebatan masyarakat Jepun, adab terjaga walau dalam musibah....Sebuah renungan buat kita semua.


Published on ShanghaiDaily.com (http://www.shanghaidaily.com/)
 
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=467066&type=Opinion
EDITOR'S note:   



from http://wuxinghongqi.blogspot.com/  
THIS letter, written by Vietnamese immigrant Ha Minh Thanh   working in
Fukushima as a policeman to a friend in Vietnam, was posted on New America Media on March 19. It is a testimonial to   the strength of the Japanese spirit, and an interesting slice of life near the epicenter of Japan 's crisis at the Fukushima   nuclear power plant. It was translated by NAM editor Andrew Lam, author of "East Eats West: Writing in Two Hemispheres." ShanghaiDaily condensed it.                                             
                                                                 
 Brother,                                                        
                                                                 
How are you and your family? These last few days, everything was   in chaos. When I close my eyes, I see dead bodies. When I open my  eyes, Ialso see dead bodies.                          
                                             
Each one of us must work 20 hours a day, yet I wish there were 48 hours in the day, so that we could continue helping and rescuing folks.                                                         
                                                        
We are without water and electricity, and food rations are near   zero.We barely manage to move refugees before there are new    orders to move them elsewhere.                                  
                                                               
I am currently in Fukushima , about 25 kilometers away from the nuclear power plant. I have so much to tell you that if I could write it all down, it would surely turn into a novel about human relationships and behaviors during times of crisis.             
                                                                
People here remain calm - their sense of dignity and proper behavior are very good - so things aren't as bad as they could  be. But given another week, I can't guarantee that things won't   get to a point where we can no longer provide proper protection and order.                                                      
                                                                
They are humans after all, and when hunger and thirst override dignity, well, they will do whatever they have to do. The government is trying to provide supplies by air, bringing in food  and medicine, but it's like dropping a little salt into the ocean.                                                          
Brother, there was a really moving incident. It involves a little Japanese boy who taught an adult like me a lesson on how to behave like a human being.                                      
                                                               
Last night, I was sent to a little grammar school to help a charity organization distribute food to the refugees. It was a  long line that snaked this way and that and I saw a little boy  around 9 years old. He was wearing a T-shirt and a pair of   shorts.

It was getting very cold and the boy was at the very end of the   line. I was worried that by the time his turn came there wouldn't be any food left. So I spoke to him. He said he was at school when the earthquake happened. His father worked nearby and was  driving to the school. The boy was on the third floor balcony   when he saw the tsunami sweep his father's car away.            
                                                                 
I asked him about his mother. He said his house is right by the  beach and that his mother and little sister probably didn't make it. He turned his head and wiped his tears when I asked about his relatives.                                                      
                                                                 
The boy was shivering so I took off my police jacket and put it on him. That's when my bag of food ration fell out. I picked it  up and gave it to him. "When it comes to your turn, they might   run out of food. So here's my portion. I already ate. Why don't you eat it?"                                                    
                                                                 
The boy took my food and bowed. I thought he would eat it right away, but he didn't. He took the bag of food, went up to where  the line ended and put it where all the food was waiting to be distributed.                                                    
                                                                 
I was shocked. I asked him why he didn't eat it and instead added it to the food pile. He answered: "Because I see a lot more people hungrier than I am. If I put it there, then they will distribute the food equally."                                   
                                                                 
When I heard that I turned away so that people wouldn't see me cry.

A society that can produce a 9-year-old who understands the concept of
sacrifice for the greater good must be a great  society, a great people.                             
                                                                 
Well, a few lines to send you and your family my warm wishes. The hours
of my shift have begun again.                             
                                                                 
 Ha Minh Thanh         


 LESSON TO LEARN FROM JAPAN ***********

10 things to learn from Japan.
1. THE CALM
     Not a single visual of chest-beating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated.

2. THE DIGNITY
     Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture.

3. THE ABILITY
     The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didn’t fall.

4. THE GRACE
    People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something.

5. THE ORDER
    No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding.

6. THE SACRIFICE
    Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid?

7. THE TENDERNESS
    Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak.

8. THE TRAINING
     The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that.

9. THE MEDIA
     They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage.

10. THE CONSCIENCE
      When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly!                
                                            



Martinelli Hashim

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