Pray for the Philippines

I am not so much of a patriotic kind but the recent devastation caused by Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan led me to care about my country, the Philippines. We weren't directly hit by the storm surge since we are living far from Tacloban City but I felt really involved in this massive tragedy.

Days before Yolanda came, different warnings were announced regarding the typhoon. We were told to keep safe. I also remembered listening to different guidelines on how to survive the typhoon.

November 8 came, it was a Friday. I've read from social media sites that Yolanda officially entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility. There were heavy rains here in Manila but it wasn't too strong to kill a person but I've seen some "personal" videos posted on the Internet on how strong the typhoon was in other parts of the country. I got scared.

The next morning, weather in Manila was perfect. It was windy and sunny at the same time. I remembered staying in our terrace and just enjoying the wind. I thought Yolanda was just another overrated typhoon... or so I thought.

Saturday night came and several newsflash about the typhoon was shown on television. All you could hear was destruction and death. I saw the aftermath caused by Typhoon Yolanda only in our television but I was crying. I suddenly realized that Yolanda was far different from any other calamity this country has ever experienced. Thousands of people were killed. Millions have lost their houses. Survivors were desperate for food and shelter. It was painful to watch.

A week after all these things happen, the whole nation is still in mourning. We are still burying our dead, people are still finding answers, we are still rebuilding our home. We are broken.

The scope of this destruction is not just amongst the victims and survivors of the typhoons. Some people are angry with the slow response of the government, the government is very defensive as they claim to be doing their best. Victims were coined as looters. Local and International media were fighting over the accuracy in reports. It's like a war.

In the end, this is a trial and we all need to be strong. This is not the time to be selfish, this is the best time to give. This is not the time to blame, this is the time to take action. We are all vulnerable but we have hope. We are all human but we have God.