We got to Manila on December 7th around 12pm and from there were taken to a room to get debriefed on what we were about to see and experience when we would get to Tacloban. I have never been a part of a natural disaster or any type of relief effort so I had no idea what to expect from the stories that they were telling us. I knew that this week would be a hard a hard one, but I had no idea how I was going to handle it.
After the meeting, my team and team Ratsah said our goodbyes to the rest of the squad and got on the back of a flatbed truck to make the journey of "24" glorious hours to Tacloban which was where the typhoon hit the hardest.
Driving through the country you would never think that a typhoon had hit, it was beyond beautiful throughout with palm trees everywhere and bright colorful buildings. I kept wondering when we would get hit with the sight of the destruction. I had only seen a few things about the typhoon and didn't really know what to expect or what we were getting ourselves into.
After a ferry ride, and a 40 hour bus ride we came into Tacloban City at sunrise on December 9th. It was almost surreal seeing this beautiful sunrise come up over the debris and aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda. Forests of palm trees were flattened and houses were no longer standing.
It has been a month since this super storm hit the island, a storm that took the lives of almost 6,000 people. Squatter shacks are being built throughout the debris and the roads have all been cleared and all the wreckage is swept to the sides. There are small fires everywhere as the people of Tacloban continue to clean up around them. We are partnered with a team that has already been here for almost a month and are staying in a school building that is located where most of the damage was caused by the winds. There is no electricity except for the few hours that they turn on the generators at night.Even with everything that we have seen on the drive in we still have not seen the worst of it, its hard to believe that this is all caused by wind and water.
Throughout the week our ministry is to help with the feedings that they do from the school and two local churches twice a day. We all pile into various vehicles equipped with our buckets of lugau and our scoopers and head out into the affected areas to hand it out. Children and people come out of the woodwork the second you start yelling " lugau, libre!" with pots, coffee mugs, sand pails, candy dishes, anything they could find to put the food into. Everyone yells "thank you" as we pass whether they have been given food or not, everyone has a huge smile on their faces. It is 29 days after and they are choosing joy, houses are starting to go up and kids are out in the streets playing basketball and soccer.
God continues to be faithful.
Story after story of families loosing their loved ones and just trying to make it through the storm but being so thankful to God that they survived. Seeing bodies being identified on the side of the road, seeing people bury loved ones as we drive down the street, and watching funeral processions take place along the road.
Seeing the kids joy when you simply hold their hand as they walk with you, or watching your teammate set up a tire basketball net so that the children can have a place to play. Watching peoples faces light up when you tell them that you are so incredibly happy to meet another survivor. Listening to people thank God over and over again that their families are safe and that they have made it another day.
God still remains faithful, and seeing the people choose joy and hope makes me believe that even more.
God was there before the storm, He was there during the storm, and He will continue to be there long after it has all passed!
I went into that week thinking that I would be able to bring a little bit of hope to the wonderful people of Tacloban, but I left being filled by the hope that they have and the joy they continue to choose!
-H
