Thinking of Vanuatu

This week the temperature dropped around 10 degrees - most likely linked to Cyclone Pam which has been battering the Pacific and devastated Vanuatu. The biggest impact on my household has been learning the best settings to use on the heat pump - as we only moved into our house around eight weeks ago and haven't needed to use it until now. I've also had to cycle through wind and rain on my way to and from work rather than the wonderful sunny conditions I've been experiencing recently. However a colleague sent an email around my work this week that caused me to pause from my usual work mindset at least for a moment. He wrote in the email that ever since he'd undertaken a VSA placement in Vanuatu many years ago he had stayed in contact with two friends on different islands, Nelly and Ruth. Since Cyclone Pam struck he had been unable to reach Nelly on the phone. He wasn't surprised, Nelly was on the island of Erromango which was devastated. Nelly has five school-aged children. The other friend, Ruth, had phoned him. Her house has been completely flattened and she is living in a school, now that they have cleared it of debris. Ruth didn't ask for anything but my colleague intends to send her some money. When he asked for her bank account details Ruth said she was downtown and didn't have them on her. My colleague suggested she phone him back with the details when she got home. Ruth reminded him that she didn't have a home anymore - as he put it, a somewhat telling point. I am also going to give some money to Ruth. If anyone would like to join me let me know.