A sad, sad day for my country

Today (actually yesterday, Sept. 30) I had set aside to work on my prize for the Fall into Fall giveaway blog hop (follow the scarecrow in the sidebar for more info and to follow the blogs in this hop). Instead, I spent a large part of the morning waiting to hear from my children as to their whereabouts in what turned out to be a day of deep social unrest.My boys were safe and sound – one of them working at home, the other one in Guayaquil immersed in a meeting all morning and with no idea initially of the chaos that had come over the country. As soon as he heard, they closed shop and he headed home immediately. This was the city where the most looting and ransacking took place… In the meantime, I worried about Jamie. She had gone down to the university for what had initially started as any other normal day. Until I called her and told her she needed to get back home (and to safety) as soon as possible. Easier said than done. Along with her friend, it took them a couple of hours to get to her friend’s house and off the streets. And then several hours of waiting before venturing out to come home.

As a policy, I do not like to talk about political issues on my blog. Yet I cannot at the very least mention what has been a shattering day for my country, regardless of what side of the fence one sits on. Apart from that, I don’t really feel like talking much about it. I realize, in fact, we are such a tiny country, that most people have probably not even heard of what happened here today. For us it was real and heartbreaking. So I will just refer you to a couple of news sources, should you care to read more about it. Click the links for news articles from Reuters, CNN, and Yahoo News.

Anyway… I am late in posting what  my prize for this giveaway will be. It’s been a stressful and overwhelming day, not knowing if what we were experiencing was (yet another) coup d’état, and terribly afraid of the possible bloodshed and loss of lives. So  I’m sure you understand if my mind and heart were not on quilting today.

I’ll be a little late, but I will post my prize later. Today. (:

This entry was posted in Life in Ecuador. |Comments closed

16 Comments

  1. Anna in Illinois
    Posted October 1, 2010 at 4:00 am | Permalink

    Glad the kids are fine and that you are safe too. It is sad and scary when something like this happens. Stay safe and I hope things improve very soon.

  2. Posted October 1, 2010 at 5:04 am | Permalink

    Very sorry for you and your country.
    Yes, in France, we have heard about what appened. Sad, very sad.
    I hope everything will be fine very soon. Take care of you and your family.
    Warm regards from France,
    Sylvie.

  3. Posted October 1, 2010 at 5:41 am | Permalink

    Angie, you are in my heart and prayers. Please stay safe, my friend.
    Thanks for the links, I had not heard the news.
    Un fuerte abrazo,
    Valentina

  4. Posted October 1, 2010 at 5:41 am | Permalink

    How scary a situation to be in. I trust that you and your family and friends stay safe while these events unfold. I hope that things are resolved peacefully soon for your country.

  5. Posted October 1, 2010 at 6:10 am | Permalink

    Lamento muchísimo lo que ocurrió y las consecuencias de este hecho. Aqui seguimos las noticias minuto a minuto. Para mí fue muy impactante porque viví una situación similar en BsAs en diciembre de 2001. Yo trabajaba a 4 cuadras de la casa de gobierno, permanecimos encerrados durante horas, no se podía salir por la violencia, los gases lacrimógenos y todo lo que abunda en esos momentos. Mi mayor temor era pensar en mi hija de 3 años, en casa con su niñera pero yo sin saber cuál era la situación en esa zona. Nuestra salida fue digna de maleantes, huyendo en auto, a contramano, desafiando policía montada y grupos revolucionarios. Durante varias semanas viví asustada por los ruidos, o al ver grupos de gente reunida, cualquier cosa me asustaba. Menos de un año después me mudé al interior del país, no soporté continuar allí. Les deseo lo mejor, que todo se resuelva pacíficamente y se pueda continuar con la vida diaria en normalidad. Besos

  6. Posted October 1, 2010 at 6:44 am | Permalink

    Hola Angie!!!
    Ayer mientras te escribía un e-mail no sabía lo que pasaba en tu país…
    Luego al encender la TV. lo supe, muy triste situación y automáticamente pensé en ti.
    Que vengan tiempos de paz!!!!
    Un abrazo

  7. Jane
    Posted October 1, 2010 at 8:16 am | Permalink

    Angie I was thinking of you yesterday when I heard the news on CBC Radio (Canada) of the terrible occurrences in Ecuador, actually you and your blog are the only Ecuadorians of which I am personally aware.
    I am happy to read that you and your family are unscathed and I hope that your country is able to conquer this ordeal to the benefit of all concerned.
    Thank you for your blog and your wonderful patterns.

  8. Posted October 1, 2010 at 10:33 am | Permalink

    I am so thankful that you and your children are all safe at this time. I’m sorry for the stressful day you have had. How I take for granted my safety. I pray that things get better for you and everyone in your country. Take care.

  9. Wendy
    Posted October 1, 2010 at 11:21 am | Permalink

    I’m so sorry for you, your family and your country. I’m glad you’re safe and pray for this crisis to be over for you all soon.

  10. Jean
    Posted October 1, 2010 at 9:40 pm | Permalink

    I heard on CNN what had happened. Mercy how scarey that must be. Please know that my prayers are with you and yours. Hope all settles down very quickly for all. Thanks for letting us know you are ok..

    Jean
    Oklahoma, USA

  11. Jeannette Kasbergen
    Posted October 2, 2010 at 12:55 am | Permalink

    A few years ago, I visited your wonderful country and it really scared me, hearing what happened in Quito and Guayaquil. I am glad you informed us, that you and your family are safe and I sincerely hope and pray that the situation will get back to normal as soon as possible.

  12. Nancy Noah
    Posted October 2, 2010 at 11:01 am | Permalink

    Angie, you, your family and your country are in my prayers. Glad to hear you are all safe and pray the social unrest will be resolved not only there, but throughout the world.

  13. Irene
    Posted October 2, 2010 at 9:37 pm | Permalink

    Angie, les he tenido en mi pensamiento a tí y tu familia, desde que ví los titulares del principal diario de mi país. Espero que todo se haya normalizado y puedan seguir su vida en paz. Mis mejores deseos y oraciones están con ustedes.
    Irene.

  14. Mary Val
    Posted October 3, 2010 at 4:41 am | Permalink

    How terrible for all of you, I can imagine how terrifying for all of you. And I am so grateful your children are all safe.

  15. Posted October 6, 2010 at 11:23 am | Permalink

    wow, how scary. I hope you and your family stay safe. Ecuador will be in my prayers

  16. Laurie
    Posted October 6, 2010 at 8:35 pm | Permalink

    I am sorry for the unrest in your country – it has re-affirmed to me how fortunate I am to live in the United States. I was just fussing about how sad I was to miss Fall in my new home of Texas on the giveaway post. Now it seems quite silly to complain of such things – thank God that you and your children are safe. I will continue to follow you and hope that your beautiful country will be calm once again.