I’m a nervous wreck right now from reading people’s updates about typhoon Haiyan back home. Being away from the people I love at a time like this, I can’t help but worry. It’s especially scary when I recall the devastation caused by the major storms I’ve weathered in the past, but it’s also strangely calming remembering that God saw us through all of them.
The 3 most significant ones that I can think of are Ruping (Cebu 1991), Milenyo (Manila 2006) and Ondoy (Manila 2009). Each one was memorable in its own way.
I was only 7 years old when Ruping slammed into my hometown. Until today, whenever we talk about storms, its name is always mentioned because of the devastation it caused. Our whole family huddled together in the basement of our new house (we had only just moved in a few months prior, and the house hadn’t even been completed yet). The roof from my uncle’s house next door flew off and they had to take shelter in closets. I remember how scary it was to listen to the wind howling, sounding almost human.That was the first time I had ever witnessed the sheer destructive power of nature. But I felt safe knowing that at least my parents were there to protect us.
But one of the best memories from that experience came on December 23, 1991. We had been living without electricity since the storm on November 13. Our subdivision was dark and quiet. And suddenly the power came on. Everyone in the village started cheering and shouting “Merry Christmas!” We were so happy to finally have lights, and just in time to celebrate Christmas.
Milenyo was the first storm I ever survived on my own. My memories from it are both hilarious and terrifying. I was living alone in an apartment in Salcedo Village, Makati and had no internet, radio or TV at home. So I had no idea that a typhoon was even coming. My boyfriend at the time called me and said that there was a storm but I thought it was just your run-of-the-mill squall, with some rain and thunder. I was very, very wrong.
I had been bored at home so I decided to go to the internet cafe down the street around 10 AM, not knowing that the typhoon was set to hit around 11 AM. I noticed it was really windy while I was walking down the deserted sidewalk but didn’t think anything of it. I went online but social media then wasn’t overflowing with news updates so I was still completely clueless about what was coming. Until the power went out. And I walked outside to see branches of trees flying through the air.
I spent about an hour in the convenience store next door, along with about 8 other people who were stranded. When the wind started to die down a little, I decided to make a run for it. Big mistake. It turns out, the storm was so strong that the trees all along the sidewalk had fallen over, completely wrecking the concrete and making it impossible to pass. So I had to walk on (or rather, wade through) the road. Or what was once a road but had turned into a jungle river. Knee-deep water rushed through the street and I had to climb over several fallen trees from Salcedo Park lying across it. It would normally take me only about 5 minutes to make that walk but it took me about 15 minutes to navigate around the trees while fighting against the wind and the water current and looking around to be sure I wasn’t going to be hit by flying debris. It felt like an hour. When I finally made it back to my building I was soaking wet, covered with leaves and twigs, and missing a flip-flop. The security guard stared at me as I walked past him and up the pitch-black stairway. When I was back in my studio and had a candle lit, I started laughing hysterically. It was a combination of relief and terror and the thought of how ridiculous it had been to put myself in that dangerous situation. God was watching over me that day.
My last big storm was Ondoy. I was a fashion student then and living in a condo with my friend Tracey. We had several other friends over who were regulars there. None of us really watched the news so we were enjoying a cold, rainy morning just lying around. I hadn’t even gotten out of bed. At around 10 AM, I got a frantic call from my mom asking if I was ok. I said something like “Yeah, I’m ok, why? It’s just raining here.” And I could hear the strain in my mom’s voice saying “Will you turn on the news! There is a huge storm!” I had told her about my experience with Milenyo so I’m sure she was worried I would do something stupid again. So I went out into the living room where Tracey and the others were watching TV and I told them what my mom said. And when we switched the channel to the local news, the first shot we saw was the cars in the street being washed away. We quickly rushed out onto the balcony to check out the situation. Three floors below, the street was flooded neck-deep. We actually saw people SWIMMING across the street.
We were so blessed during that harrowing time. We never even lost electricity. We stayed safe and dry while so many were left homeless and suffering. So when the storm was over, my friends and I wanted to give something back. We volunteered to repack and distribute goods to affected communities in Manila. That was my first time joining disaster relief efforts and I will never forget that experience. It was amazing to see students from “warring” universities working together to do something good for the people of our country. We saw the best and worst come out of people: generosity, helpfulness, compassion…and greed, selfishness and indifference. In the end, the light coming from the positives far outweighed the darkness.
Terrible things like typhoons often polarize people in their faith. People either turn to God during natural disasters, or they question His existence. Personally, I still get scared. In my doubting human self, I always worry about my family and friends, and it’s so much worse being so far away. But in the end, faith is not about knowing that nothing bad will ever happen to the people you love, or even to yourself because terrible things will always happen in this fallen world. Faith is about knowing that, whether good or bad things happen, God is always in control.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
-Romans 8:28
