Moment of Silence

We live on a very busy corner. Our apartment faces the interesction of two major streets. Picture 4 roads intersecting just outside our windows.

The first road is entirely under construction. From our balcony, we can see into the hole taking up most of this 5-lane road. It is so deep, we can not see to the bottom. They are building a tunnel under the river, and their access point is in the middle of this first road. From our balcony, we watch workers coming and going, carrying things and dropping them. We listen to jackhammers and heavy trucks. These workers never get a day off, and are only allowed a few hours rest - somewhere between 2:00am and 5:00am. The noise, and the dust, are relentless.

The second road leads straight to the ferry station on the river. Two ferries leave alternately from this station, carrying walkers, bikers and motorbikers. A steady stream moves in and out of the station. Between our intersection and the ferry station, the street has become a bus station. At least 10 busses wait in the street at any given time - more as the night deepens. People run to catch their busses, climb on and off, and peddle street food. Busses putter and spurt, making continuous noise throughout the day.

The third and fourth roads carry all of the traffic leaving these 3 destinations - the construction site, the ferry station and the bus station. Traffic zooms past at full speed, often entirely ignoring the stoplight. Trucks carry construction materials to the buildings that share our intersection - across the street, a complex of 7 buildings is being constructed.

We live on a noisy, busy corner. And our home is no worse than any other in Shanghai. Construction happens everywhere, and at breakneck pace. We have heard that the majority of cranes in the world are in use in the city of Shanghai. I have no doubt.

So, when the Chinese government declared a Moment of Silence at 2:28pm - 1 week to the minute after last week's earthquake - I was skeptical. It seemed like an empty gesture. Moments of silence in America are generally only observed by people in goverment buildings - banks and schools, primarily. Not many people in China spend time in banks or schools. The vast majority of people in Shanghai seem always to be on the streets, masses or people moving from one place to another. And in such a noisy city. I scoffed at the idea. Furthermore, they made the declaration yesterday afternoon. How could they communicate this effectively?

At 2:28 this afternoon, horns began to blow outside our window. L-- and I stood on the balcony. We watched and we listened. And I was amazed. Within 15 seconds, more horns were blowing than I could find vehicles for. The construction sites were whistling, as was every boat on the river. But in such a noisy location, the smooth constancy of this sound was more like music.

And slowly, everything stopped.

All of the workers put down what they carried, and moved toward the edge of their work site. Taxis pulled to a stop in the middle of the street. Bikes and motorbikes curbed on the corner. Not a boat moved across the river.

The sight was overwhelming. It was as if the city of Shanghai, possibly the entire country of China, had become a temple. The sounds of the city played a requiem in smooth unison. In an aetheistic country, I'm not sure that everyone said a prayer. But everyone took a solemn moment to remember.