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Kuni Takahashi
Fukuko Hatakeyama, whose house was washed away in the tsunami, talks about her loss as she stands in debris in Miyagi prefecture on March 29.
Kuni Takahashi, a photojournalist based in Mumbai, returned to his native Japan after the earthquake and tsunami. He was born in Sendai, one of the most devastated towns on the northern coast.
"Did you find anything?” I ask the woman when I see her digging through the debris with her cane in Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture.
“I had 4,500,000 yen (US$53,000) wrapped in special cloth but it’s gone," says 80-year-old Fukuko Hatakeyama, clearly upset.
She'd been saving the money, wrapped in fire-proof material, for years to leave it to her son.
Her house, flattened by the massive tsunami and the remains ravaged by fire, is gone. Debris is piled and scattered for more than half-a-mile. Her son and daughter-in-law, who live in a nearby evacuation center, tell her not to go back to the area because it is dangerous with debris. But she sneaks out anyway.
“I come here every day to look for it but I can’t find anything. Now there is nothing I can leave to my son when I die," she says.
She adds quietly: “There are too many people on the earth messing with nature…the gods may have punished us.”
More photos from Kuni Takahashi on photoblog.
‘I come here every day trying to spend time with my wife who I couldn't save'
'I still keep calling my sister's phone, hoping she may pick it up'
Leave a Comment:
Poor woman. Supernatural beings didn't do this and she surely shouldn't think that she deserved to be punished. I hope she finds the strength to rebuild her life and be happy.
What a loving mother that's sole concern is about providing for her son. It truly breaks my heart, I hope she finds it and if it was taken by looters may they be cursed the rest of their days.
I completely agree with the lady....we (humans) are DEFIANTLY being punished!!! We take, take, take, and think the world revolves around our own individual selves. It is a rarity and a blessing when you find one who gives back more than they take. TAKE being a very broad term in this suggestion! Our moral and dignity has vanished and we constantly put EVERYTHING before God, or whatever deity you choose to worship. It sickening where our world is headed, and YES, we are being punished!!! The end times are approaching whether you choose to believe or not!!!
I think if any "thing" were to blame for this, and I don't. I would have to say the whales are seeking revenge.
May the Lord bless you and keep you
May the Lord make his face to shine up on you and be gracious to you
May the Lord lift up his countenance and give you peace.
May the Lord bless you and keep you
May the Lord make his face to shine up on you and be gracious the you
May the Lord lift up his countenance and give you peace
God does not punish. The final punishment of mankind was placed on His Son Jesus Christ. It is through the acceptance of Him and His sacrifice that we find eternal reconciliation with God and are able to spend an eternity with Him. "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”-Acts4:12 I know God weeps for this woman and the effects of sin on His children. He longs to comfort her through our acts of service.
No gods punish anybody or anything.This poor old lady doesn't understand the workings of this planet! She's sounds like such a loving person toward her family!
I hope maybe,just maybe she can find her money!It means so much to her to be able to give it to her son.Best of luck to her, she's a real sweet heart!
Just breaks my heart to see these photos. I purchased a new car this year and I bought a new Camry because Toyota was giving back money to the tsunami victims. Made me feel good and the thought of buying a GM product to make the currupt unions richer turned my stomach