WHILE the plants sway and swim, the rain shows its wrath. Cars turn into subpar submarines, as the murky water draped with rat urine flashes a menacing rainbow that promises to sicken pets, livestock, and humans alike. Calamities like this happen every year; so, how can we break off from this gruesome cycle of rain, flood, and disaster?
It shouldnât always be about resilience, we need change. The situation that we are facing is never going to get any better with food packs and mattresses alone. If we canât change the fact that typhoons happen every year due to our country being near the equator, we need to prevent damage before the disastersâ consequences come to life.
Yes, it warms our hearts seeing fellow Filipinos working hard to sustain their familiesâ needs, but doesnât it sound wrong to let someone on a tricycle, let alone a motorcycle, plow through deep waters that contain chemicals, microbes, and dangerous objects that can lead to injury, while they make just enough to pay for their rent? Is it okay if a group of young students stay stranded with no signal for hours just to dip their toes in floodwater to go home after a late suspension? Is it normal for us to sit down and watch people face their daily struggles while we glide our fingers through our phones and click on a âheart reactâ just to ignore the real problem that was in front of us the whole time? These âwholesomeâ stories can turn into tales of the past if we pay attention to how we can avoid these said outcomes, because we can never get over the surge of calamities if we donât think about the masses and the less privileged.
And even if we do not have the power to make big changes happen, the least we can do is to pay respect to those affected by the harsh weather conditions around us. The classic rule of âThink Before You Speakâ plays a big role in actually caring for our fellow Filipinos; and being sensitive with our comments about the weather is a start.
For instance, many netizens have called out online users who make posts about being happy because of the ongoing suspension of classes, even asking for more of these to delay projects, quizzes, and school as a whole, not being aware of the true circumstances on why they have been cancelled. Children, teens, and our generation as a whole need to be aware of the privileges that we have as students who are advised not to go outside during this serious situation, and think about the people who have no choice but to continue risking their lives every day to make ends meet.
As Filipinos, we should employ our bayanihan values in times like these, when itâs dark, gloomy, and complicated. Yes, we should uplift and applaud the people that work hard despite various obstacles, but we also need to highlight the fact that this cycle will repeat itself over and over again unless we do something about it. Helping each other with the power that we have is a must. And no matter what weâre going through, respect is something that we should always speak up about. And finally, we have to accept the rainy truth: resilience is nothing without improvement./PN
