BAYANIHAN SPIRIT RAISES AFTER TYPHOON ULYSSES
Crysthel Castaneda
The bayanihan spirit, undoubtedly a trademark among Filipinos. This is most conspicuous in times of emergency and tragedy. In all the cases, separately, Filipinos from all walks of life held hands and demonstrated a response that allowed the younger generations of Filipinos a glimpse of the kind of heritage that has made the Filipino truly what outsiders have dubbed a cooperative spirit.
The cooperation among each other, as has been the case in succeeding situations of emergencies and tragedies, continued even as the heavily silted floodwaters started to recede and the weather disturbances had cut an eerie trail of destruction in most parts of the country’s main island of Luzon. In the wake of typhoon Ulysses, it was heartening to see that during and after the typhoon, the famed “bayanihan” or tulong-tulong spirit of the Filipinos stayed alive, particularly in the matter of attending to the immediate needs of the evacuees. The spirit also showed in the avalanche of relief aid and volunteers who repacked the relief goods to be given to the typhoon victims. Also, Filipinos here and abroad fervently monitored the developments in the rescue and relief operations hoping to gain news of their kababayans. Filipinos worldwide, despite being separated by land and sea, are once again united with a sense of bayanihan as they endeavor to rebuild their home country together. Motivated by a common purpose, our fellow Filipinos overseas have made significant contributions to the relief efforts for the victims of the recent typhoon. Along with the outpouring of aid from different institutions and foreign governments, there is no shortage of support from various Filipino communities around the world. The support from the international community continues as more initiatives have been planned by various groups in an effort to hasten the rehabilitation.
Indeed, so many lent a helping hand in bringing life back to normal in our typhoon-ravaged country. This was a big tribute to the Filipinos’ undying bayanihan spirit.
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The author is Internal Auditor Bridge Bank at Botolan, Zambales