In The Night

My experience of the September 7.1 Magnitude earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand

Epileptic seizure of the earth.
The darkness hides its secrets,
but magnifies our terror.
Like a silent witness crouching
in the darkness,
it catches us by surprise.

Hypnotised by fear.
Nowhere to run,
nowhere to hide.
Convinced mother earth
was calling our number.
Time forever frozen in our
cities ticking tower.

A collective picture montage
imprinted in my mind.
Walls dancing,
roads buckling.
The dooms day roar of life
as we know it changing.

Standing helplessly beneath
the framed entrance.
Forced against my will to watch fear
etched on the faces of my loved ones.
The heartless matriarch of nature
has unleashed her caustic fury.
Then Silence.