Yolanda can make us better

Fr. Lito Maraya

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Yolanda can make us better
'There is life after Yolanda, but let us start our new life right. Value the things that are essential, the things that last, and always put love in your hearts.'

Typhoon Yolanda, otherwise known internationally as Haiyan, was the strongest typhoon to make landfall in recorded history; and we, Leyteños and Samareñyos, had the courage to face head-on its mighty winds and the water surge that went with it.

The United States of America is no longer the only land and home of the brave. There are now three, including the islands of Leyte and Samar. 

Lately, I have been hearing some discussions on how we the survivors should celebrate meaningfully the second anniversary of typhoon Haiyan. I saw two extreme positions: one, to focus only on remembering how we all suffered; two, to forget what happened and focus only on the celebration for having been given a new lease on life.

I personally believe they are compatible. We remember the tragedy as we also celebrate having made it through the fury of Haiyan.

Life is a process; but what is a process? To process is to convert what is raw, useless, even harmful, and make it useful – for example, iron ore. It’s a raw material, but, once processed, the ore can become metal out of which we can make spoons, forks and many other useful tools. So what is raw and useless, once processed, could be become useful.

We are now commemorating exactly two years after we have experienced the indescribable individual and collective tragedies brought by Haiyan, but we are also celebrating.

What we celebrate are two years of God’s blessings. Look at our mountains and the trees. They are green again. Our streets are again heavy with traffic. That means there are lots of activities – and activities are signs of life.

We may have been left behind by six to eight thousand fellow Leyteños and Samarareños who died but we were not left alone by millions all over the world who did their best to keep us alive.

Therefore I should not allow Yolanda to destroy us. Let Yolanda create a better you, a better me. Let not Yolanda be destructive. Let it be creative. I learned three lessons from my Yolanda experience which hopefully will help create a better me.

STANDING AMIDST THE RUBBLE. Despite sustaining damage, the Palo Metropolitan Cathedral remains upright. Photo by Voltaire Tupaz.

First, I should treasure what’s essential in life. Just like most, if not all, of our people here, I almost died as I lost practically everything due to Yolanda. I lost my clothes, shoes, cellphone, laptop, lecture notes, books, personal files, and my car; but I realized they are not really important.

They are not essential to life. What really matters in life is our family, our friends, and our God. They are more than enough. One author said: “The most important things in life are not things. They are people.” Your parents, my brother and sisters and our God.

Unfortunately they are the ones we oftentimes neglect and forget. Many foreigners wondered how come we could still smile even in the midst of death and tragedy. They want to know our secret; but our secret to resiliency even after such a disaster of biblical proportion is our faith in God. God was here with us before, during, and after Yolanda and will continue to remain with us. 

Today people speak of building typhoon resistant structures, houses, and buildings. They also speak of financial resiliency, by encouraging us to save money so that we will not be dependent on external help. Others also speak of disaster-resilient businesses, or businesses that are not dependent on changes of climate. But what we have is the best of all these – our faith in God.

Faith is the best resiliency factor that we have, and that is what we all saw before, during and after Yolanda. No wind and water, no matter how strong, can wash our faith away.

Second, I should value only the things that last. Today many things catch our attention: new gadgets, new clothes and pants. They are all fads and fashion; and all these have one thing in common: they do not last. Like anything fashionable, there will come a time, they will be out of “uso”.

St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:13 wrote: “And now there remain faith, hope, and love, these three: but the greatest of these is love.” Focus on things that last: love in the family, love of parents, love of friends, and love of God.

Third, and last, lesson: I should tell myself again and again that where there is love, pain, trial, and sufferings become beautiful. Look at the cross of Christ. It has 2 bars: one horizontal and another vertical. One symbolizes love; the other symbolizes suffering.

Did not our Lord say: “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for a friend”? When there is love in the family and when there is love for God somehow they make the pains caused by Yolanda easy to carry.

The umbrella does not stop the rain, but it helps us walk under the rain. Love in the family and love of God do not solve all human problems but they make our sufferings easy to bear. Fill your hearts with love. That’s the secret to happiness even in the midst of heat, recurring brownouts and scarcity of food on the table. As one line of a familiar song goes: “When we’re hungry, love can make us alive.” Love supplants whatever we may be lacking materially.

So for us who survived, the best way to honor those who have died is by being a better person. The best way to remember the dead is by being better sons and daughters of our parents, better husbands and wives, better mothers and fathers, and better citizens of this country and of the whole world for we are actually only one people of this earth.

Their best memories are us who survived. We have to show those who died that our having survived the wrath of such a monstrous storm is a blessing to mankind, and not a curse.

STILL HOPEFUL. Fr Lito Maraya (seated 3rd from left) at a meeting with fellow priests. Photo by Voltaire Tupaz

Finally, what we all saw in the morning of November 8, 2013, at the height of the typhoon were white tongues of air and water. This reminds me of the Creation story. According to Genesis 1:1-2 “In the beginning, the spirit of God, like a dove, hovered over the waters.” And God said, let there be light. It was the beginning of creation.

There is life after Yolanda, but let us start our new life right. Value the things that are essential, the things that last, and always put love in your hearts. Only then will Yolanda create a truly better me, a better you, a better us. – Rappler.com

Fr. Lito Maraya is the rector of St John the Evangelist School of Theology in Palo, Leyte. He was wounded during Super Typhoon Yolanda and had to have 21 injections and surgery on his right foot. 

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