ondoy afterthoughts

“ Tragedy is a tool for the living to gain wisdom, not a guide by which to live."
- Robert Francis Kennedy -

tragedy is a tragedy. calamities are unavoidable. yet, dare i say, man can either make them worse, or prevent them from getting worse.

yes, i am talking about the floods that recently crept in my hometown, manila. several thoughts entered my mind as i learned of the devastating news. safety of my family and friends. irresponsible philippine government. 2012 phenomenon. emergency measures. money down the drain.

what bothers me most is that we are all aware of these facts: manila is prone to typhoons. manila is overcrowded and polluted. manila's drainage system is in dire need of improvement. and these facts have long been facts....ever since i was a child.

i have no memory in my lifetime that the government (present and previous) implemented measures to improve manila's population explosion. everything is almost always in manila. a new entrepreneur would open his first restaurant in manila. a maid from bohol would most likely come to manila to find an employer. call centers are most likely in manila. new condominiums are built in manila everytime i visit. all filipinos know that.

at the same time, the age of irresponsible consumerism does not help. plastic bags are everywhere - on the streets, over the waters of manila bay, in the open manholes. i have yet to see a person from manila going out from a store carrying an environment-friendly shopping bag.
very much different when i was in germany 9 years ago, where people seem to do just that.

and then disaster strikes. people need help. we are probably wise not to call the police, and instead we call tv stations for help. rescue operations are organized by private sectors. a neighbor carrying a crippled old woman up the roof. a man rescuing his friend using his jet ski. people taking matters into their own hands. not to say that the government is not involved, but where are the helicopters, where are the life boats, where are the leaders?

there is no denying though, that filipinos are resilient people. we seem to deal with tragedies as a way of life, and we can easily spring back and be happy again. but sometimes i tend to wonder if this is a good thing. are we so used to dealing with these that we just tend to accept it? can we not make it a habit to foresee that these tragedies will most likely happen and we, as a nation be more prepared the next time it strikes?