My First Earthquake
Arequipa experienced a magnitude 6.2 earthquake in the wee hours of the morning today, July 8, 2008. It was my first earthquake. I’ve lost my earthquake virginity. I don’t remember exactly what woke me up. Maybe my roommate’s childhood toys falling from the shelving unit at the foot of my bed. Or the glass windows next to my bed banging against each other. Or, just maybe, the floor rocking my bed up and down literally shaking me out of my dreams.
I leapt up, opened the door and stood in the doorway (I had learned that it what you’re supposed to do in an earthquake). My roommates came out of their rooms at the same time as I did. My roommate’s toys kept falling from shelves and, unfortunately, my things also fell from the nightstand. The tremors gradually weakened and subsided. I was back in bed under the covers with the door closed before my roommates could even get to their bedroom doors. I fell asleep easily.
I forgot about the episode this morning, only remembering when everybody asked me if that was my first earthquake. I was like, “Oh yeah.” They said 6.2 was pretty weak. I agreed.
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