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| Credits: http://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/Typhoon-struck-Philippine-city-begins-mass-burial |
Haiyan. Yolanda. You will be remembered as one of the strongest typhoons in history. And you chose the Philippines. You chose the dreams and plans of the Filipinos in the Visayas region (central Philippines) to shatter with your wrath.
Every waking moment of our lives, we make plans. In our own ways, in our own definitions of spontaneity or organization, we arrange our lives. We worry about our deadlines and our personal goals: losing 10 pounds before the year-end, saving up five million bucks for early retirement, getting married before turning 30, turning in the reports before Monday, or simply crossing out the items in our to-do list for today.
All these now seem trivial as we see a comparably larger scale of dilemma. A problem that cannot be solved by just sheer discipline or hard work. A resolution that cannot be kept just by unwavering dedication. This force majeure swept away the dreams and plans built by thousands of Filipinos. We've had our own share of losses from the deaths of loved ones, to damages from fires, previous typhoons, man-made disasters and even the recent earthquake. But Haiyan/Yolanda's wrath left most of us, even those who are not directly affected and even the rest of the world looking on, with utter disbelief at the vastness and depth of this disaster.
Filipinos are banking on their waterproof spirit and resilience to walk through...mourn through...even smile through this unbelievable devastation. They lost homes and families and possibly lost hold of the great plans they've made some months ago. They may have had the same dreams and goals as you but they have no place for these now in their current state of desolation. Desperation. In the dead silence of every night that they have to live through, they may hear that sound of emptiness like one quick blow to extinguish a candle, or one slight tipping of a card before the rest of their life came tumbling down. They're back to almost nothing. A deep sigh. But yet, there's that little bit of faith.
A lot have been said about so many issues --- the government, the relief operations, the preparedness, media commentaries, and even the people. I do not want to comment on these now. When one has lost all material possessions and so many physical lives, one can't help but dwell on the main dilemma of recovery and getting back to a sense of normalcy. We are here for our fellow Filipinos, helping in our little ways. We are millions in a 7,107-island nation. Every little help will count. The nations around us are pitching in and we greatly appreciate the love generously given. I personally feel that we are no longer this small third-world country that sometimes they are not aware existed. I feel that we are part of this world now.
As we sit back in the safety of our homes and see all the news and images roll in our TV screens, we feel fortunate and blessed. But what happens now? We've been through disasters in the past five years - typhoons Frank, Ondoy, Pablo and Sendong are among them; the recent earthquake which tore down the Catholic churches in Bohol and Cebu gave us little time to recover before this most recent super-typhoon; and these disasters may have spared us but their traumas have affected our spirits beyond what we can admit.
By the time we turn off those TV sets and turn in our beds, don't we listen to that quiet space before sleep comes? Some may call it doubt, or inner voice; others may recognize it as a prayer, a conversation with our Creator. Some questions that keep us awake: 'What do these all mean to me?' 'Is the world going to end?'
The world may have ended a long time ago. Or it will end when it should. Depending on your faith or religion, you may see it either way. Are what we are seeing now the pockets of judgment that the Holy Word has warned us about? I hope that those who abide with a different holy book or belief system will not stop reading here. As our pastor has always preached, salvation is personal between you and your God.
I will not preach here. I will only write down a few of my realizations as I listened to that quiet space at the end of the night.
Life is short, indeed. How many times do we need to be reminded of this? The family of one of our staff, who lives in Guian, was severely affected by the super-typhoon. Our staff was in Cotabato and Davao assignments when all these happened. There was desperation until he was able to finally contact them after several days. Now, he wants to resign from his job. His loss may be much more devastating than I can imagine but I can understand his grief and that urgent need to be with your family. I felt the same way when I lost my father. Amidst all these, I learned of another sad news. Another staff from our Core Business Services died due to an asthma attack. I was told that his nebulizer didn't function and he tried to take himself to the hospital; unfortunately, he died on the way while on a taxi. When I learn of these stories, especially from people you know personally, the more that I realize the brevity of life. It doesn't matter where you are; when it's over, it's over.
So what happens now? A question that we ask too often? And we only ponder on this deeply when faced with a tragedy or an overwhelming realization. We make plans. But we need a leap of faith. I read about Noah and the ark. Some will remember this as the greatest flood in history and some may refute its veracity. But there are these two verses that I hold on to:
"For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." (Matthew 24:38-39).
Eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. 'What's wrong with these?' our pastor asked (in a Sunday service held last year). 'Nothing. Except that they lived casually. They made plans. But forgot about God.'
I am a planner --- an organization freak, maybe. Some of you may be a lot like me or even much more organized. But we all have plans. And dreams. And goals. Have we included God in them? 'How?' you may ask. Have we asked if the plans we are making are in accordance with His will? Like maybe, does He want me to leave my current work for my so-called dream job? Am I through with the mission that I'm supposed to do in my little way, in this little part of the office, working in this mini-team with different men, which is still incidentally a fraction of God's great divine master plan?
At the end of each day, does our 'Thank you' mean 'Thank you for letting me do my part. Today, You helped me show one person that promises should be kept. He may forget about me but he will not forget about You.'
After maybe a really long time, our fellowmen in the Visayas region may recover from Haiyan/Yolanda's devastation and rebuild their lives. The rest of the Philippines and the rest of the world will move on with their lives. We will continue planning and dreaming our futures. I hope our take-away from all these is to factor God in our plans and dreams. Include Him and consult His Will. There is a Higher Being who oversees all these. We should live each day as if it's our only lifetime, our only chance to do our little part of His Great Plan. God bless the Philippines.
"Live each day as if it is a borrowed day, a day of the Lord". - Pastor Quiboloy
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