Hawaii tsunami warning a big wake-up call

O world invisible, we view thee,

O world intangible, we touch thee,

O world unknowable, we know thee,

Inapprehensible, we clutch thee!

— Francis Thompson

No one goes courting disaster, but when we see one on TV or read about one in the paper or — horror of horrors — are involved in one, we realize just how little of the world is in our control and how much we are in God's hands.

Trouble certainly wasn't on the minds of our generous kids and their spouses when they planned a week in Hawaii to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary.

It was to be family bonding in paradise. But disaster is almost what we got when the day before we left an 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit Chile, resulting in a tsunami warning for the islands.

Because we were on the Kona side of Hawaii and not the Hilo side, we weren't too concerned.

Still, it was not an experience to wish for, and because we were vacationing, we were not at all prepared.

My husband and I were staying on the fifth floor of a hotel. Our first thoughts were to have everyone come to our room and we would watch the wave arrive. Come one, come all — front row seat!

That wasn't to be.

First, our son Jim sent a text asking how excited would we be if our cars were trashed?

Let's get serious here!

Shortly after his text, the hotel warning signal started blasting and people were banging on our door to get out, get out! Everyone was to head for higher ground.

Our son Mike picked us up and confessed to having an almost empty gas tank. We stopped at a gas station, and when we were three cars away from nirvana we were sent away as the gas was gone. Not a good feeling.

So we headed to where the others were staying to plan our next move.

Our son Steve knows a family in Waikoloa, and that is where we headed, dropping Mike's car at a high point along the way.

As everyone knows and to the relief of all, the tsunami did not hit Hawaii, but it really did stir up the ocean. When we finally got back to our hotel the water was the color of green Gatorade, and there was a 5-foot tide every 10 minutes in an area that normally only has a 2-foot tide twice a day.

About an hour afterward the water looked normal, but later it took on a somewhat green color again.

It was irritating to lose half of our last day, but when we saw the vast ocean change as it did, we more fully realized the enormity of what could have happened. We were thankful.

It is frightening to think the solid earth we love so much can rumble in an instant and fracture lives as it has so tragically done in Haiti and Chile.

Curious to see if the frequency of natural disasters has increased, I found Web site called reliefweb.int. Here's what I found:

In 1990 there were 45 worldwide disasters; in 2000 there were 69, and in 2009 there were a whopping 135.

Is it because of better record keeping or awareness?

I am not sure if these numbers represent all facts, but thinking about it might get people to stock up on a year's supply of food and water — if you haven't already.

Every day that we are alive and safe — and the people we care most about are, too — is indeed a gift.

e-mail: sasyoung2@aol.com