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| 72 hours of torrential rain... 504 mm of rain water in just one day, more than 2 million people displaced from their homes. (AP Photo/Malacañang Photo Bureau/Jay Morales) |
I woke up in the middle of the day on Thursday with the cheerful tweeting of birds outside my window, and two cats were chasing each other noisily on the roof under the beautiful sunshine, albeit weak... and I THANK GOD with all my heart!
Wednesday night was a very long night, just like the three nights before it. We were monitoring the rain and the danger it might bring to our home. After 72 hours of relentless monsoon rain, it was hard to breathe normally. The voluminous rain water that the southwest monsoon unleashed raged through the streets in nearby places in wild amok, swallowing more than half of Metro Manila, and many provinces in Central and Northern Luzon. The massive floods affected more than two million people in the island.
While most members of my family are fortunate enough to be in locations safe from flooding (dear God, THANK YOU!), the last 72 hours between Sunday and Wednesday, sleeping wasn't really sleeping for us. We literally just passed out from exhaustion -
mostly of the mind - caused by worries for a few members of our family who were stranded in places surrounded by flood water, and sadness for some friends who, unfortunately, were badly affected by the raging flood water. Our country bled from the pounding of another calamity, and it dampened our spirits. But there was joy, too... the country may have been pounded to its knees, but we went down on our knees with our faces turned to the skies - in prayer to our Lord God, and our arms linked together in admirable Pinoy Bayanihan spirit. I know this might be a time for sorrow... but I don't feel sorrowful. I feel proud of the Filipino's unbroken spirit, and this country's will to get back on its feet notwithstanding the hardship it takes. Kudos to all the wonderful national government officials and local government leaders who stood valiantly between their people and death, especially to the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) cool boss, Francis Tolentino. Sir, you are awesome! We have also seen the Philippine National Police (PNP), Marine, and Coastguard at one of their very best moments - risking their own lives to save many. And, I'm sure, I am not the only person who wishes to thank sincerely the wonderful men and women in the different TV and Radio Networks' news crews who tirelessly worked 'round-the-clock to keep the nation sufficiently informed all throughout our ordeal. Their contribution to the disaster management was invaluable indeed. You guys are heroes!
So, yes, it was a grueling 72 hours... but on Thursday morning, the birds were chirping merrily. There is hope.
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Note: I wrote a blow-by-blow account of the "72 hours of rain", and I was meaning to post it here. I realized just now, however, that the account is full of RH Bill-related disgust for the Malacañang-House of Representatives Olympic-like synchronized "political acrobatics" that compromised "daang matuwid" to a "short-cut re-route" once again... as well as frustration from the Judicial and Bar Council's indecision over Sec. Leila De Lima's supposed disqualification from candidacy for the position of Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court. Politics aside, it should be easy to just drop her. Curiously, all that "muddy politicking" was in perfect "harmony" with the disgusting mud flow that the 72 hours of rain caused, claiming innocent lives and affected many, many more. I think it isn't appropriate to post the 72-h account here at the moment. Later....
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