For most of us, that fateful Saturday last September 26 began as a typical morning, albeit a rainy one. As most rainy weekends go, employees and students alike are wont to sleep in, coaxed to slumber by the constant staccato of the rain and the cool temperature. But the rain did not stop; it went on and on, quickly making everyone worry that this was no ordinary downpour—and for those whose streets and houses began filling with water, it surely became a cause for alarm, a portent of impending catastrophe.

At the end of it all, after all that we (and the rest of the world) have seen and heard—and all that many of our kababayans experienced first-hand—the havoc brought about by Typhoon Ondoy was and is truly heartbreaking. Lives were lost. Homes were ruined, dreams shattered.

As the news of the calamity broke out on TV, radio, and the Internet, those of us spared by Ondoy’s tremendous rage felt utterly helpless as we saw our countrymen in Provident, Antipolo, Cainta, Quezon City, Pasig, and countless other places hold on to dear life while waiting for help to arrive. For some, rescue arrived not a moment too soon; for others, help failed to arrive in time, if at all.

Words cannot express the sadness and pain we feel for all the victims of Ondoy, especially those who lost their loved ones, and we cannot even begin to imagine the horrendous ordeal that they have faced and continue to face.

While the nation mourns the loss incurred by many of our countrymen, we have reason to hold our heads up high and stand proud in front of the world—once again, the bayanihan spirit of the Pinoy shone through, and people from all walks of life took it upon themselves to reach out and help the victims. Judge Ralph Lee, who used his jet ski to save 100 lives, is but one example, for there are many others.



From students organizing relief drives, volunteer firefighters going to the rescue, policemen and soldiers upholding their vow to serve and protect, movie stars raising funds, to the hundreds and hundreds of men and women who put their own lives on the line just to help their fellow man.

Then there are those who gave up their own lives so that others may live—heroes like Muelmar Magallanes, an 18 year old construction worker who braved raging floods to save more than 30 others, before succumbing to the brutal torrents himself. Muelmar and others like him will be forever remembered, not only by those they saved, but by the Filipino nation as a whole.

Yes, Typhoon Ondoy lashed a lasting wound on our country, a wound that perhaps may never heal. But this is not the time to crumble in defeat and despair; once again, we have shown what the Filipino is truly made of—in our darkest hour, in the face of loss and death, we, a nation in mourning, stood as one.