By Jan Vicente B. Pekas
In a rainy season everyone’s life gets harder. People from all walks of life suffer in one way or another. Jeepney drivers must drive through slippery roads and with no students to help fill their vehicles. Employees unaffected by the suspension must journey through wet hell in order to get to work and back home. Even the employees for the government whose work had been suspended must find other ways now to earn money and get food. Even the animals shiver alongside us at night.
To the people who were barely able to get through day to day before all these must now be saddled with a heavier burden. Even the grounds we walk on are not safe, they are slippery, and each step is unpredictable. When everyone around us is slipping, then its the time to be more eager in helping others.
I remember a time when our country was in a similar state. Years before, when I was still studying down south, I saw just how quickly the flatlands could be flooded. Even though there weren’t any major storms at that time a heavy enough rain shower could flood the streets at the snap of a finger. Still ignorant of this fact, at one instance I took my time walking back to my dorm, and that resulted in wet shoes and a shocked sense of reality. When a major storm did come by, I saw the same views of extreme flooding I used to watch on television when I was a child.
At that time, when the storm was truly terrifying, I was huddled up in our dorm room. I saw in our messenger group chat some students asking on the state of our classmates living in different dormitories. They were calling for help when some students were in trouble. They sent the different numbers of the relevant authorities to help them. And when the rains subsided, they quickly organized a donation program for the people severely affected. I saw at that time, the human spirit prevailing over a violent product of mother nature.
When I came to study here in Baguio, as another storm came to pass, another call for donations was sent to us by some students. The same human spirit was also present among the youth. These were truly inspiring actions shown by mere students not even a few years in college.
These events have clearly shown me that the human camaraderie cannot be taken down easily. Andthe only way to get through these truly terrifying events, is to stick together and remain united. **
