New Moon Rising

by Walt Trizna

Excerpt

Chapter One

San Francisco

Wade Randall could not remember how old he was when he heard about the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906. The quake had devastated the city he called home. The great calamity that visited San Francisco captured his imagination and from that time on earthquakes were his passion. The realization that this event could repeat itself intensified his interest. He poured over the photos of the aftermath of the 1906 quake, and was especially interested in the early movies made of the destruction. Seven hundred had lost their lives; a relatively low number compared to the more recent earthquakes to visit the Earth. The physical loss caught his interest, as well as the effort by the survivors to put their lives back together and rebuild San Francisco to the greatness he saw around him today.

Wade’s brothers’ interest in the history of their city vanished as they exited the museum door, but Wade had questions and knew his father was a great source of information. Jim Randall was more than happy to sit and discuss San Francisco’s history with his son, hoping Wade would share his passion for the past.

One day Wade approached his father as he was doing some gardening, a hobby Jim found relaxing. “Dad, when you have some time, I’d like to talk to you about something.”

Jim responded, “How about now, son? Maybe you could help me in the garden while we talk.” No one in the family ventured into Jim’s vegetable garden and flower beds except Jim. To have some company was a welcomed change, to say nothing of some help.

“Um, okay, Dad. What should I do?”

”Start pulling weeds and we’ll discuss what’s on your mind.”

Wade knelt near his dad and started pulling weeds, depositing them in the wheelbarrow to be composted.

“Dad, I want to talk about earthquakes.”

Jim looked at his son. “I’m a history teacher, not a seismologist.”

“What’s a seismologist?” Wade asked.

“A seismologist is a person that studies earthquakes, a scientist whose research involves the study of faults, and the earthquakes that result from the movement of the tectonic plates.”

“Slow down, Dad! Whose fault is it and what are these plates?”

Jim stopped his gardening. He could tell he was about to have a lengthy conversation with his son. Actually, he was glad to stop his work; he had been at it for hours. What gave him more pleasure was that one of his sons was taking an interest in something other than the latest CDs or MTV.

Jim put down his tools. “You see, son, about forty years ago scientists discovered that the surface of the Earth is, in reality, a series of plates, huge areas of land that move slowly on the Earth’s surface. The theory goes that, at one time, there was just one huge continent, which broke up, and the pieces are now moving—this is called continental drift.” Jim picked up two flat stones to demonstrate the phenomenon. “These plates sometimes rub up against one another or collide head on, one going under the other.” He demonstrated this with his props. “These collisions cause earthquakes, mountain ranges and sometimes the formation of volcanoes.”

“Faults are the areas between the plates, the breaks between the plates. San Francisco lies on a fault called the San Andreas Fault. It runs from the Pacific to northern California, then down the entire state and into Mexico.”

“How do they know when the earthquakes are going to happen?” asked Wade.

“That’s the problem,” answered his father, “they don’t. Scientists know the location of the faults, making these areas prone to earthquakes. If an area had a big quake, then had no activity for a long time, the seismologists figure that the next one the area experiences will be fairly big because of all the energy stored up that must be released. If, on the other hand, an area along a fault had a large earthquake in the past and since then had many small quakes—that’s good. Small earthquakes mean the energy is being released gradually instead of all at once.”

“Dad, earthquakes sound interesting. What about volcanoes?”

Jim got up, with Wade following him, and headed for a wooden bench beneath one of the tall maples on their property. He knew his gardening was done for the day but it didn’t bother him. Wade was full of questions and Jim felt it was important to nurture any interests his sons might develop. That afternoon, under the shady maple, the seed of Wade Randall’s career was sown.

Jim Randall had hopes that someday one of his boys would show some inclination of becoming a teacher. Jim loved his profession. If any of them should eventually decide to become teachers, he was sure their chosen subject would not be history. All three, at one time or another had told Jim how boring history was. Jim tried to explain the excitement in discovering new facts about an event that changed the course of our nation’s past, affecting how we live and our future. How, even if the facts don’t change, the interpretation of the facts can change the way succeeding generations view the impact of past events. All his praise of history and his love for teaching did not kindle the slightest spark of interest in his sons.

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