25 years already?

Today is the 25th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake in the Bay Area. I have a whole new appreciation and perspective of providing explanation/context/support for children in traumatic situations, though Hanna Lu isn't really old enough to understand explanations nor has she seen anything crazy, but having a kiddo does make one think a bit more than prior.

I was five, eating a popsicle, sitting in my beanbag chair, and watching "You Can't Do That on Television" {hello 1980s}; my grandmother was watching along with me on the couch {or zoning out or reading, which is more likely [aka what I would be doing], but I remember her watching with me}. The first thing I remember was hearing breaking glass from the kitchen and then as my grandmother was getting in the doorway I was scurrying under the coffee table like they taught us in school. When it finished shortly thereafter I remember having an empty popsicle stick in my hand because it had flown off the stick in my movement. My aunt was upstairs at the time and she and my grandmother deposited me under the dining room table with some blocks while they did a bit of damage assessment. The electricity had gone out on our side of the street but not across {lame} and two of my friends lived across the street so I was able to have dinner and a bath at my friend Emily's house. I spent the night with my mom since her place had electricity and my dad's didn't either. My main concern after the quake, after watching too much news, was that the freeway would collapse {which happened} and that the street would crack open and I or someone in my family would fall in {this didn't really happen but the streets did crack a bit and would be filled in with sticky black tar stuff...in my mind the cracks would open to great crevasses}. I don't think I mentioned these fears to anyone because my family probably would have tried to quell my fears.

It's funny because each year I notice the anniversary but this was the first time I read an article online and really looked at some pictures; it's hard to believe it was really 80s {seeing the clothes and hairstyles [hello flat-tops]} since it doesn't feel that far away.

Here's to hoping that if/when crummy stuff happens in our babe's life we'll be prescient enough to anticipate the weird ideas that young children can come up with {street opening up and sucking us all in! I also was convinced that this giant statue of a man at a local body shop would detach from the ground and come get me at preschool...and that the sounds of airplanes were other giants roaming around} {or hopefully our child isn't as bizarre as her mother is now that I type this all out and realize how coo coo I was} and {the more likely situation} be supportive and comforting adult figures for her.

Aaaaand...on to the weekend!
xoxo, natty ♥