After the Storm (Yolanda aka Haiyan)

Last week a super typhoon called Yolanda (or internationally known as Haiyan) struck our country. Although Cebu was technically located in the Visayas where the typhoon wrecked havoc, the city was somehow a little spared from the lashing unlike the northern part of the island and its surrounding provinces particularly in Leyte. We still experienced the heavy rain and howling winds. Electricity was cut off for two days and there were still a few aftershocks from the 7.2 magnitude earthquake a month before. I'd say, the experience was quite scary. I didn't want any of it again.

What I was scared about was the fact that we live in my grandparents' ancestral house as I call it. It has already stood through decades not to mention it was made of log and wood. I feared that the strong winds would simply sweep us up. Thank God, it didn't. Plus, the garden was filled with all sorts of fruit trees and other plants. One wrong gust of wind and a tree could fall flat on our home. We were all huddled in the living room with candles and flash lights at the ready. Blankets were sprawled all over the floor as we tried to dim all fear and doubt with chitchats and stories. Soon everyone fell asleep as the wind continued to rock the trees outside and rain poured hard on the already wet ground.

When I woke up, I was afraid of opening the door. The last time I remember a typhoon as strong as Yolanda was way back in the 1990s. I was a kid then. The garden was a mess and a landslide blocked part of the road. As expected, the garden was one huge mess. The banana trees lay sprawled on the ground in a haphazard manner. The flowers of our Indian tree and apple tree got blown off. No fruits for the coming season then... *sigh* A big branch of our Pomelo tree with its baby fruits broke off too. But hey, the sun was clear and Mr. Sun was already beaming at us. The storm has passed. We're fine and that I am so grateful for. We got into our feet, took hold of brooms and trash cans and started cleaning up. What surprised me though was that despite of the scary weather some things stood intact. There were things which I thought were fragile but managed to survive. I cannot let them go unnoticed so I took some shots:

Can you believe this rose managed to bloom two days after the typhoon passed? New beginnings indeed.

One of my grandma's plants was growing new leaves before Yolanda hit. As we were cleaning outside, I found these knocked off...

This has to be my favorite orchid. The Dancing Lady as what my mom calls it. Can you see the girl with her head dress and her yellow frock? This was the only one left as the others got ruined and fell on the ground.

But of course, who could forget the bamboos? These were the only plant or tree in our garden that did not lose any big branch. As what many of my elders and teachers way back in high school would always say, the bamboo resembles the Filipinos. In the midst of a storm, they bend and sway with the wind. They gracefully dance to it. They do not break. They stand strong.

After all of this, one thing was made certain. Humanity, love and kindness was still very much present (as seen here, here, here and here.) I assure you, there are tons more of pictures showing how people not only in the Philippines but all over the world lent a helping hand. It was heartwarming. THANK YOU! So much chaos has happened to the world these past few years (e.g wars) but one things's for sure. LOVE is something that is deeply planted into every human being. We will always have compassion. It is inevitable.

If you are wondering where you could send donations of any kind, here is a list of relief centers as compiled by Rappler.com. 

I did not put any graphic photos here as I prefer to keep things on the brighter side but here is an article for your curiosity: I saw death, I fear anarchy, otherwise you can Google it up yourselves.