It certainly seems to be a long shot at the moment, but there is a history of great natural disasters turning into opportunities for great renewal and progress.
May this be the eventual outcome in Haiti, as remote as that possibility now appears to be.
On Nov. 1, 1755, the capital of Portugal, Lisbon, quickly became a wasteland because of an earthquake. The Western world was shocked. Of the city’s 20,000 homes, 17,000 were destroyed.
But the city revived and a new metropolis arose with buildings built to withstand earthquakes.
Most of Chicago burned down in 1871 and from the rubble Chicago became the fastest growing city in the Western hemisphere over the next two decades.
These and other disasters created a chance to build anew, providing that the energy and will were there to do it.
After the great fire of 1666, London was rebuilt and became more prosperous and powerful than before.
The French philosopher Voltaire was one who pronounced natural disasters as eventually of great benefit, which he may have found easier to do because his house had not been destroyed.
Whatever, the world’s task now is to help Haiti overcome this mind-boggling disaster and recover. But if the seeds of renewal are not within the nation itself the job of helping Haiti become a self-supporting country will continue to be one of immense difficulty.
Can anyone, anywhere, answer the question of how to ignite a spirit of self-renewal in that forsaken country?
