Trip to Acheh

assalamualaikum:

mas tommy and myself have the privilege to go for a 'pilgrimage' to the serambi mekkah.

we were immensely moved and humbled by the scale and scope of the acheh disaster. we were devastated watching the extent of nature's power in ulee lheue - just on the north end of banda aceh.

all that we seen on the television. it was nothing compared to what we saw and experience. we were in ground zero, where everything we saw was literally crushed. whereever we saw, 180 degrees across to the distant horizon, some 3 kms radius, we can only see the silent remnants of the vicious 'air hitam' or 'black water' - the flooring
and concrete foundation of what used to be houses inhabited by what used to be the people of ulee lheue.

we found no ready reference to record what we have witnessed. some words that portrays the reality as close as possible was :
atomic bomb proportion. armageddon. kiamat kecil.

banda aceh. everywhere, remnants of the concrete-like smudge that formed from the sea sand covered most of banda aceh. the pungent smell was unmistakable and brought chills to my spine.

It will take a couple of years before the presently flooded water can recede and be inhabited by these people.

we visited lho nga the next day. the afternoon breeze that gently welcomed our presence belied the fact that only weeks before the area was ravaged by pitch-black waves towering more than the tallest tree on the region - some 50-70 meters above the sea level. the eerily tranquil afternoon hit me with a sudden enlightenment: that i am
NOTHING in the presence of the Creator.

In Aceh, God showed his presence in a grand style. Not only did God allow the waves to roam free through most of the west coastal regions of Acheh, the Divine presence is fortified by the fact that all mosques (and also churches) are intact and in decent order.

We were humbled.

We were humbled to see, and notice, the traces of God everywhere.
We were humbled to see the resilience of the acheh people.
These people have been tormented for years, since DOM back in 1989?.
We were humbled to see how these people cope to get on to real life


I am at a loss of words, everything in acheh is simply indescribable.

The Al Izhar Cinta Aceh will accordingly be reshaped (on an as.needed.basis) towards the new direction of relief effort coming into Acheh.


Wassalam,

Denny Turner
ketua beom al izhar
ortu Dira 3b/21



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Alex Noble:
If I have been of service, if I have glimpsed more of the nature and essence of ultimate good, if I am inspired to reach wider horizons of thought and action, if I am at peace with myself, it has been a successful day.