Chengdu Earthquake

I know my blog is usually on the lighter side, but today it won't be as I am finally able to write about the earthquake in Chengdu. If you have met me for 5 seconds then you have heard me talk about our time in China and how much we loved it there, and how we truly do have a special love for all things Chinese. I can hardly watch the news coverage, and when I do, I start crying. The hardest part for me is hearing about all the children. Most people forget that China has a strict one child policy. Those parents you see mourning on television have lost their only child. Also remember that China is a Communist country. So these people who are suffering aren't Christians (but they aren't Buddhists or Muslims or anything else either.) They're Communists. They have nothing to put their faith in but the government. They don't have a Father to cry out to in times of pain. Not because they choose not to believe in Him, but because they have never heard of Him. Please remember these people in your prayers just for the simple reason that they don't know how to pray for themselves.
Lots of people have asked me: Do you know where the earthquake was? Did you live there? Did you go there? Did you know anybody in the earthquake? Are your friends okay? So here are my answers:
Yes, I know where Chengdu is, but I have never been there. Jason has been many times. It is a large city in Chinese standards (which means it's way bigger than any city in the United States). We lived in Beijing which is much further north, and is about a 2-2 1/2 hour plane ride away. Chengdu is famous for its giant panda reserves. I have emailed with our Beijing friends and many of them felt it. Seems everybody that was in an office building felt it, and the people who were home noticed their chandeliers swaying or their china cabinet rattling more than they felt it. I wasn't sure what information they were showing on TV in China, I assumed that it was heavily censored and that the people in Beijing wouldn't know the extent of the damage. But it seems they are showing the devastation. I emailed with JR's Ayi's daughter who gave me lots of details of how bad it truly is. I won't give specifics, but she did say that it was "hell on earth" in Chengdu.
Please keep these people in your prayers, I can't imagine how they will overcome this tragedy.