Prayers for Japan

As the devastating news and images of the earthquake, tsunami and now nuclear threat circulate the globe, raising panic and fear throughout the world, I think about the important messages contained in my novel, The Gossamer Thread.

In the following passage, the main character Jessica has the following dream about her grandmother, who impels Jessica to open up her ancient trunk:

***

As I tiptoed closer to the trunk she took my hand in hers and whispered, They have nuclear weapons. They must be stopped.

I turned to her and asked, Who?

She said, Now is the time to open it. She slowly unlocked the trunk, releasing a whirlwind of colors into the dream, which transformed into a dazzling rainbow that saturated every part of me with a mysterious new energy.  From the middle of the rainbow gradually emerged a glistening white feather—a paintbrush ready to immerse her shimmering strands into all of these colors?

The feather began swaying back and forth, back and forth like an alluring genie appearing out of Aladdin’s lamp. Slowly her form altered into the curvy and sensual body of a beautiful, otherworldly woman, her feathery skin changing from white to red, to orange, to yellow, to green, to blue, to purple, to brown, to black and then back to white. She swayed there, changing colors for what felt like an eternity.  Staring at this gorgeous transforming creature, I heard my grandmother say, Jessica, I am the feather. You are the feather.  We all contain the gossamer thread in the interstices of our soul. The time to open it is now.

All night long, I couldn’t get this feather woman out of my mind. She stayed with me into the light of morning, as did my grandmother’s statement: The time to open it is now. I know that the trunk is somewhere in my parent’s basement and I have to drive over there to uncover its secrets.

***

With the recent events occurring in Japan and the growing threat of nuclear annihilation, the message in my novel, the time to open it is now must be heard. The secrets contained in this trunk and within the novel, The Gossamer Thread are ultimately ones we all possess deep within, yet we unfortunately forget to behold, embrace and live by. We have survived thousands of years filled with man-made and natural disasters, violence, anger, hatred, prejudice, world wars, etc. however our bruised planet is only able to tolerate so much.

Tonight imagine that within you are the elements to shift what is occurring on our planet. As the grandmother in the novel says, I am the feather. You are the feather. We all contain the gossamer thread in the interstices of our soul. The time to open it is now. Instead of sitting idly by, how can we all help the victims in Japan? What can we pull out of our ancient trunks to remind them that humankind is still human and kind? The victims need basic necessities — food, water, shelter –yet they also need hope and prayers. Tomorrow my kids and I will put together a care package for a few children and families in Japan, sending them the comforts from our home and letting them know that on the other side of the world, they have not been forgotten. Our thoughts and prayers are with them all.