I went to Ortigas three days after Typhoon Ondoy/Ketsana pummeled the Metro after having been invited to help pack relief goods for the victims of the said typhoon. At Zoe Broadcasting Network where I was escorted by my sisters, I came upon a room filled with happy people with smiles that seemed to be stamped on their faces. Some even buried by piles of canned meat and sacks of rice that are being divided into smaller portions, but laughter and smiles still exude their aura.
Boxes of canned meat and fish filled the room. Plastic pails, sacks of rice, noodles, biscuits and towels and other toiletries seemed to go in, in a seemingly unending fashion. I was overwhelmed! I asked myself, "What have I gotten myself into, this time?".
After a little chit-chat with the organizers of this relief operation, work commenced...
With the limited space allotted for each volunteer, I thought that I had to go out of the room to find a place where I could fold the towels properly before they could be put inside plastic bags that are due to be distributed the following morning. In the middle of the process, I felt bored. My back ached from carrying the towels outside the room and bringing them back in after I have folded them. And like I said, it was like an unrelenting flow of tasks! And when I bring the towels back inside, I still see the people, my fellow volunteers seemingly enjoying their work. I even heard occasional loud chortles and chuckles! I was confused! Why would they laugh when they have been working long hours even before I got there? Why would they laugh when all these had to be packed before sunrise?
And during that time, while I was alone, working by myself, I realized how blessed I am to be volunteering rather than being one of the victims.
I thought of the word "relief"... In the dictionary, it means "lightening of something oppressive"... Then, I thought of the people who had no choice but to wait for relief goods to arrive in the midst of the floods and chaos brought about by the onslaught of Ondoy. When all we had to give was something to "lighten" their current dire situation.
What if no one came to offer relief?
What if we run out of relief to give?
I fought hard to concentrate on my tasks so I could finish my work as quick as possible and then move on to another post in our cramped assembly line knowing that I would always find a warm, dry bed to sleep on after my volunteering shift is over, as my consolation.
No wonder my fellow volunteers smiled and laughed together a lot. Even in long hours of hard labor. Carrying loads and loads of goods is a very serious matter. But they worked without any complains whatsoever in the still of the night to the wee hours of the morning. We ALL have every reason to rejoice! For we are still alive and safe in the protection provided by the Lord above.
Makes me want to break into song...
"When the oceans rise and thunders roar,
I will soar with you above the storm!
Father, you are King over the flood,
I will be still for you are God!"
I am very sure that some other MSC members may have been heroes in their own rights during these times but there wasn't any chance to share it with us in this blogsite. I just know it! My volunteering work at Zoe may just be a speck compared to the others who have reached out to help the typhoon victims. But I hope and pray that my work would be pleasing to the eyes of my God!
This was a photo taken when Leo (Ibayan), Bass (wearing red shirt) and wife Gigie came home to the Philippines to celebrate Christmas. 
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