MY TATAY IS A SPARTAN:
A CELEBRATION OF LIFE AMIDST THE MAYHEM
Jeromel N. Candido
When super typhoon
Yolanda (Haiyan) wreaked havoc in the Visayas in Central Philippines, our tatay (father) was in
Baranggay San Isidro, Hernani, Eastern Samar, one of the devastated areas. Anxiety
set in for no news, no words were received from tatay after the blackout, which completely cut any communication
possible in the area. After nine days, on 18 November 2013, Monday, I received
an unexpected call from tatay himself!
At the time when hope was almost gone and tremendous apprehension ensued, he
called and we talked for an hour as he imparted the details of his arduous
ordeal and the challenges the survivors faced in the aftermath of the
catastrophe.
According to tatay, Yolanda started hammering at
11:30 pm of 7 November 2013, Thursday. He
used his cellphone to track the time. At 2:00 pm of the following day, our
bahay kubo (nipa hut) was already blown
away and ripped into pieces.
Miraculously, he got out in time and secured himself in
our pigpen, which was made of concrete materials. With deadly winds that can
reach up to 195 mph, even its roof was no match to Yolanda. Nevertheless, tatay got hold of our
old "batya" (laundry basin). It was the only thing that
shielded him at that moment. Try to get the picture of a Spartan’s shield from
the film "300" that was used in protecting the body’s of soldiers
while on defense mode... that's how big our battle “batya” is and that’s how resilient our tatay is.
At 4:30 am of 9
November 2013, the situation changed from worse to worst: strong winds were whirling
as if one is inside a washing machine that is spinning out of control. At 6:00
am, the wind reached its peak and sounded like crashing and rolling boulders
that produced a horrible scream (just like in a horror movie). It was not just
once that tatay asked himself, “Could this be the end?” At 10:00 am, the
wind dwindled down; but the casualties that Yolanda left was far beyond words.
Everything was gone in our farm: our bahay
kubo, our crops and our livestock. It is as if everything was harvested in
just a blink of an eye just like the online games Farmville and Hay Day. Our
good ol’ pigpen stood still and sheltered tatay for the next nine days.
At the brink of
psychological breakdown, my tatay managed to cope up with the situation
through prayers. On the fifth day after the typhoon, the relief operations of
the government reached the place, handing the survivors a kilo of rice, a can
of meat loaf, and a pack of instant pancit canton. It must have been a relief
for the desperate survivors to have food. They must have been very grateful yet
the operation only pushed through days after the typhoon. A survivor to survive
such a situation must be extra resourceful. The noodle was good for only one
serving and there was no regular ration. For nine days, my tatay endured having only coconuts to nourish and sustain him.
There was no potable water so the coconut juice sufficed at that moment. Hopefully,
the situation has improved.
He also related
that there was a time when he was already confused, wandering blank and just
snapped out of the bewilderment after hearing the voices of his family calling
him. The people in San Isidro may have survived the wrath of Yolanda, but most of
the survivors find it difficult to survive, or worst, have died trying to
survive because of hunger and sickness. It was such "a very depressing scene", said tatay.
After a period of
denial to what had happened to our farm, a sense of acceptance and gratitude
for God’s gift of second life lingered. From Hernani, Eastern Samar, tatay decided to travel to Catbalogan,
Samar where our nanay (mother), Mely,
together with my family, was. My uncle Rey described a very emotional encounter
of my parents. Saddened and still on the state of grief for we have a number of
relatives who passed away in Tacloban City, Leyte, where Yolanda smashed
everything and only few survived, we nevertheless still managed to celebrate
for the return of our tatay.
In spite of everything, I would say that, “God
is good all the time and all the time God is good.” We should move forward,
be positive and accept everything as a gift. God loves us very much no matter
what. There is always a brighter side on this. Let us all trust in God’s mercy,
grace and love. Amen.
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