Seven days after an earthquake struck off the coast of West Sumatra, the mood in Padang was a fermented mix of relief and anguish.

When I asked a man why everyone seemed to be laughing and smiling despite the fact that their lives appeared completely shattered, he told me, "It's the culture smiling, but inside there is a lot of pain."

And indeed the powerful...
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Seven days after an earthquake struck off the coast of West Sumatra, the mood in Padang was a fermented mix of relief and anguish.

When I asked a man why everyone seemed to be laughing and smiling despite the fact that their lives appeared completely shattered, he told me, "It's the culture smiling, but inside there is a lot of pain."

And indeed the powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake which struck 49 miles deep in the ocean some 28 miles northwest of West Sumatra's capital, Padang on 30 September 2009, and the 6.2 magnitude quake that followed one day later, left behind an enormous amount of pain, a whole lot of destruction and many shattered lives.

The latest figures from the United Nations, OCHA estimate 1,117 people died and another 1,214 were injured. At this writing, final estimations on the number of buildings and homes destroyed are still being tabulated, but these numbers are easily reaching into the hundreds of thousands.

The Indonesian government estimates reconstruction costs to be at US$745 million.

People have lost their homes, their businesses and their livelihoods. Many have lost family members and friends. One woman said, "We can't mourn what we no longer have, we can only be grateful for what we do have." How true, but do they really mean it? After my time there, I believe they really do.

In fact, the only thing that seemed firmly intact and beautifully functional in West Sumatra was the irrepressible human spirit of the Indonesians who, while greatly affected, are finding their way through all the rubble and debris, including the pain.
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