Wilson, Kathleen

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MANUSCRIPTS 31of a cli~f from which she would fall if she were not holding tosomethmg.At last she said in a clear, rich voice, "The rest doesn'tmatter."§ § § §EarthquakeKathleen WilsonIhad just remarked how strange the weather seemed. The dayThe heavy with heat, without a breeze to stir the stagnant air.ed sun was out of sight behind a cloudy slate-grey sky whichseeme to impa t t1 1 1. b 1 AI -1 k b r ae same ( ull color to everyt ung e ow. st 00 ack on that day now I am inclined to describe thealmosphere as one of ominous q'uietude but I had no forebodingst len' I b 1 ' di, _ are y took notice except to o-rurnble about my IS-comfort. bWhen I first heard the deep, distant rumble, I thought howstr~~lge to have a thunder shower in California, but this "thun-der had no lightning to acompany it-it didn't ~top.. Thepeople about me stood wide-eyed wonderino- and hsten1l1g tothe animal-like growl that seem~d to COl11~ up through theground on which we stood.T.hen we pitched and shook as though the earth wererebellmg against its dormancy. I was frightened. and I thoughtof God-how strange it is that fear of tragedy bnngs ~ne closerto God. So many thoughts tumbled through my m irid : Menare such vulnerable beino-s-so soft and defenseless agamst thehard, mighty strength of nature. Neither science nor govern-m~nt can build a barricade against this sort of an attack. Surelythis must be the most terrible of all natural phenomena. And,as irony would have it, just as I was creating grandiose visionsof destruction and terror, the quaking stopped as abruptly as ithad begun.The ensuing quiet was deafening, and I had to resist theimpulse to laugh hysterically and shout that this was my firstea.rthquake, . how admirably I had survived! And that was it.NIght ~el~, Just as though this day were like all others, withno deviation from the normal path of nature's routine.

Earthquake

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Earthquake

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Digital Commons @ Butler University