Six months since 25,000 people died

On March 11, 2011, a quake registering 9.2 on the Richter Scale was caused by shifting of tectonic plates off eastern Japan. Unlike most earthquakes, which tend to center in one place, such as the one that hit ChristChurch New Zealand, this one spread for 200 kilometers along the edge of the Pacific Plate and was felt as far away as Alaska and Siberia. Devastation wracked Japan. Not just in the areas hit by massive tsunami, but in places hundreds of kilometers away -- Urayasu, for instance, where Disneyland is located, suffered immensely from liquifaction, which left holes beneath streets that only came to light when the heat of summer arrived.

Remember that more than 1,500 children lost their parents. Remember that 250,000 people were displaced. Remember that some people around the Fukushima Nuclear Plant may never see their homes again in their lifetimes.

I have picked up some scenes from Youtube that you who search in English would never find. The soundtracks are in Japanese. Turn off the sound if you wish, but look at the messages. Please.

Nik Morton and I have both published books for the disaster. All the proceeds, from the authors and from the publishers, go to help victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. At the end of this post, I'll give you tags where you can spend a little money to help many people.

Scenes not shown even on Japanese TV

More from the early days after the quake

The town of Ishinomaki in June

More than three million views of the tsunami at Ishinomaki

A 40-second drive along a beachside road

This is what was left of the Watari-Arahama Fishing Co-op building after the tsunami. Friend Conan Grames sent word that the LDS church donated an ice maker capable of making 3.3 tons of crushed ice to the Co-op. All 84 of the ships operated by fishermen belonging to the co-op were damaged. So far, 16 are back in operation and the ice maker allows them to get their catches to market. People still need help.

Nik Morton's blog is here. And his book, When The Flowers Are In Bloom is here.

My book, A Matter of Tea, is a selection of short stories about Japan, including the one that received first prize in the 2010 Oaxaca International Literature Competition.