Horrible Moment

 On April 25, 2015, I was having lunch with my family at home when the ground suddenly started shaking, and there was loud noise. We were all confused and at the same time terrified with everything that was happening. We began running trying to find safe place. As I think of it now, I can still feel the vibrations. It was an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8, and the epicenter was in Gorkha, Nepal. This was the first time in history that an earthquake of this magnitude had occurred in the country. After that, there were several aftershocks, including one with a magnitude of 6.3 just ten minutes later. The shocks continued to occur repeatedly. After that catastrophe, we lost some of our close relatives and friends, struggled with finances, and also there was damage to our home.

More than a thousand people lost their lives, and more than twenty-five thousand got injured. I lost my best friend, Bina the same day. She was inside her home when it collapsed. Bina’s family was also inside the house, so everyone died on the spot. We were other same age; she was only twenty years old. We often used to hang out together. She had been a great friend, and I have beautiful memories with her. During those days there was lack of resources, and many people died because they did not get medical attention on time. My mother’s sister also died in the earthquake due to the same reason. She used to live in the village of Lamjung.

Besides these horrible deaths, many buildings and houses were damaged during the earthquake. More than 750,000 houses collapsed around Nepal. Many houses were made of concrete, including my house. The walls of my house were destroyed. Pipes were damaged, all the windows were broken, and many more things were damaged, throughout the home. As a result of the damage, my mom said that my sister and I were going to the town to live with my grandmother. At that time, it was hard to get any public vehicle, but We somehow managed to go to the village. In addition, historic temples and historic buildings, which were built between the twelfth and eighth centuries, were also destroyed. Tragically, royal palaces in Kathmandu, and Durbar Square in Bhaktapur were also affected. All these historic buildings were collapsed, which resulted in loss of thousands of years of architecture and culture.

            Finally, the price of everything started increasing. The GDP decreased by twenty billion, which was only half the budget. My family also faced financial problems, as the prices of goods were outrageous. My mother lost her job. After that, we struggled more for everyday goods. My mom had to borrow money from relatives. so, we could buy food. We used to buy less expensive foods and could not afford chicken because it very expensive.

This single earthquake changed the entire country and everyones lives. Many lives were lost, and many were injured. I lost my beloved friend and a close relative. My family faced financial problems, shortage of food and also our house was damaged. However, many Nepaleese came together and helped each other. People shared the limited resources they had, provided emotional support to each other. After the earthquake, I learned many things including people’s resilience and how they come together in the face of adversity. From this experience, I understood the importance of having community.