Destruction everywhere

pedicure by flashlight

I went out to the Visayas region, to one of the areas that was hit by the recent typhoon.  Words, pictures, nor videos can describe the scene.  It's like a warzone, only there was no war. Homes that were once there are either flattened, barely standing, or have simply disappeared. Schools destroyed. Businesses, gone. You would not dare stay past dusk since electricity is shot.  We took the hard working local staff, who they themselves were personally affected greatly, yet reported to work the day after the typhoon to search for the community members they work with, out for dinner. Very few options available. Rotisserie chicken, turned by hand.  One loud generator, probably for cooking the rice or something, because a meal without rice in the Philippines is not a meal. We could barely hear each other over the loud generator. Inside a small store was a boy doing homework or work of some sorts using a candle light.  The salon next door to our office there was open - a lady was getting a pedicure with the help of someone holding a flashlight.  Amazing.

As difficult as it was to see what had happened, I could not help but be so encouraged by the positive and enterprising spirit of the Filipinos.  They typhoon just came through, but they are back at work, trying to rebuild and get their lives back together. That spirit that's been in the news is real. Hot businesses right now: "charging stations."

 

But the most encouraging glimpse God gave me was this sight below.  It was even more amazing in person. As the darkness was settling in and sun going down, the bright sun shone through that darkness, past the destroyed buildings, downed trees and hanging electrical wires. God is reigning there. His light is and will shine even more brightly there. Grasp onto that hope that He is coming back again to bring true light and life to the broken and dark world below.  It will be ok... more than ok.

Smiles amidst the rubble

An article I wrote for another blog...

I’ve been in the Philippines working with our partner here, the Center for Community Transformation for the past couple of months. The head of CCT had asked if we could help CCT in building its 2016-2020 strategic vision and plan, so I’ve been here meeting with the leaders and staff and facilitating planning sessions.  I was in Manila when typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines, devastating many of the communities that CCT works in.  After the typhoon, all staff were ‘all hands on deck’, including me, jumping to help in the relief and recovery efforts.  I visited some of our community members last week.

On our visit to deliver relief goods and check on some community partners in a small village in Estancia, a fishing town destroyed by the typhoon, in the midst of piles of metal sheets, piles of snapped branches and fallen trees, housing materials scattered, and even cinderblocks shattered and knocked down, we found a community of people with huge smiles, excitement, and determination to move on and rebuild their lives. The innocence of children who had just experienced a traumatic storm, survived, but now homeless, just being children, enjoying the company of other children, posing with huge smiles, begging for photos to be taken of them. First 2 children, then 3…4… 5… the next thing we knew, all the children in that little village were running over to greet us with their huge smiles. Their joy was contagious.

CCT is committed to the long-term rehabilitation of the areas affected by the typhoon. In just helping our staff and community partners put a basic roof over their heads and re-start destroyed businesses, the costs are estimated to cost over $2 million US. Please continue to keep the Philippines and CCT in your prayers, and please invite your friends to join us.

lost in translation... not santa's elves...

filipino english and american english are different.  words that they use for things, we don't use.  for example, whenever i arrive in the philippines, i am always informed that so-and-so will come "fetch" you.  or the word "avail" is used quite regularly.  so whenever i am there, i take a cautious approach, not to offend anyone by my facial reaction or verbal response to something they say that sounds weird.  umm... in american english, only dogs fetch things...

so here i am, i've just landed at iloilo airport in visayas.  we stop to get some jollibee for breakfast before hitting the road for our several hour journey to eastern samar and estancia where we have community members and staff who were affected by the typhoon.  the pastor, his wife who is also a teacher at the pre-school there are sharing with me their experiences the past couple of weeks since the typhoon hit and the challenges and all.  then the pastor says "if only we had an elph. that would help us so much."  So i want to smile but they are serious, so i stay serious... maybe an "elf" is a term filipinos use to describe hard working people, willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard... like santa's elves do when the christmas season comes around.  so i say, very seriously and sympathetically, "oh yes, some elves would probably be very helpful."  they look at each other, smile and start laughing... because an "elph" is actually the name of a pick-up truck type vehicle... it would be helpful so they can drive over all the broken branches on the ground and help with the clean up...  we had a good laugh about that.  i dunno... i didn't want to come across culturally insensitive...