06 October 2009

September is the cruelest month

This post was in my Blogger drafts folder since September 28, and apparently, I forgot to publish it. The past few days have been crazy, with the office on emergency mode, responding to the needs of children in the aftermath of tropical storm Ondoy. Anyway, here goes:


I don't have the heart to post trivialities at the moment. Too many people have died and suffered this month.

Needless to say, Tropical Storm 'Ondoy' (Ketsana) left a terribly destructive trail of flashfloods and landslides in Manila and other provinces. This calamity hits too close to home, and forces us to reflect on the utterly temporal state of things.

But Filipinos, resilient as ever when experiencing the cruel side of Mother Nature, were galvanized into action in the midst of calamity. While our country sadly lacks resources (such as rubber boats!) to enable quicker and more efficient rescue operations, it is nevertheless heartening to see that our bayanihan spirit is still alive.

People were using Facebook, Twitter and GoogleMaps to update disaster and emergency groups on victims urgently needing rescue and assistance. Telethons, SMS campaigns, and various donation channels were set up to accept monetary donations. And of course, there will always be volunteer work in relief operations.

Went to Ateneo yesterday with Bun and Danna to do volunteer work in assembling standard food packs. It was a bit of back-breaking work but the four hours we spent were very productive ones. I couldn't believe the overwhelming number of students, alumni and other individuals who were present last night to help in whatever way possible.

Took some [not-so-very-good] photos from my mobile phone on the relief operations. Go Ateneo TaskForce!







P.S. Currently working on UNICEF emergency appeal efforts for Tropical Storm Ondoy. Here's hoping more support comes pouring in.

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