Devastation and Uncertainty

The storm has finally subsided. I walked around the village to know what has happened to the other areas. Different types of debris like branches, garbage bins, parts of GI roofs, and pieces of wood scattered everywhere. Our surroundings have totally changed. A new world has unfolded upon us. Our place used to be clean, green and full of trees but now; most of the trees have fallen, and all the others have turned into twigs. Most of the roads were impassable because of the fallen concrete posts that have occupied the entire way. There were so many people walking around, surveying and taking photos. The devastation was huge; it was something no one hasn't seen before, something like a post-war scenery. 

There was no internet, no electricity, no phone signal, and no news about the other places that were also devastated. We have been cut off from civilization and knew only about our immediate surroundings. For the first time I have felt how it was like to be a victim of a calamity. I have often seen situations of calamity victims on the news. And yes, we become aware of their difficulties, yet we tend to ignore them and just let it pass. We choose not to be disturbed and we only want to go on with our own lives. But now, I've realized that it's totally different if you personally experienced it. To be in the midst of a reality you can't escape, there's no other choice but to deal with the reality itself. 

There was this feeling of uncertainty; you just do not know what would happen next since everything was unstable. You wouldn't know whether help was coming, and when everything would get back to normal. With all these drastic changes, I was saddened but not entirely downhearted. At times, I would question why it had to happen; of all the places that Haiyan would hit, why here? But there was no point in questioning. It has already happened and it was something out of our control. We were lucky that we still had our house, complete; and all of us were perfectly safe. Despite everything, there were still many things that we were thankful for. 

Everything inside and outside the house was chaotic and there were lots of cleaning up to do. However, it wasn't really a difficult problem for me. Instead of being distressed with all these, I was more of challenged and motivated. I do not know why; but in that situation, I only thought of going on, and to keep moving forward. I was enthusiastic enough to work. I took out the rainwater flooding a part of the house, and I did some cleaning outside. There were still much more things to do but we were already running out of daylight, and energy too. 

At night, our sources of light were candles and lamps. We took dinner and listened to the news from the radio. There wasn't really much news because all communications were down in Leyte, and in the northern part of Cebu. I also learned that Cebu City wasn't affected, and that there was no casualty reported.  

After a very long day, we finally rested. We had to gain energy, since there were so many house-rehabilitation activities for the next day.