IN VISAYAN Mythology, Magwayen the formidable goddess of the waters and seas was also the deity of death and the underworld. Calm, vast and tranquil, but with the potential to raise violent hurricanes and cause widespread havoc when angered.
She represented not only a caring mother, provider of plentiful harvests at sea and nurturer of livelihood and nourishment, but also a bringer of destruction, leveling villages to the ground with her waves and storms, swallowing whole towns with her floods.
Often pictured as a beautiful woman in a gown that flows like streams and adorned with an elaborate crown of gold and jewels, Magwayen was also believed to be the ferrywoman of the dead, guiding souls to the watery depths of the ancient Visayan hell. She was both loved and feared, worshipped for her care and benevolence, feared for her ruthlessness and power.
Magwayen’s rivers and shores allowed our ancestors to thrive and build growing communities and Barangays but with a snap of her fingers she could easily take it all away. This is a lesson we learned the hard way nearly two years ago, Yolanda ramming through our eastern coasts, the Filipino people unprepared for the calamities that were upon us.
As connections were gradually being rebuilt in the days after that unfortunate November day, and as news and communications started to trickle into the media, we found ourselves a nation united in awe. Shocked by the images flashed on our screens and saddened by the stories we heard and read about. Orphans roaming around in search of their families, body bags lining the streets, a mother and child who hid inside a refrigerator thinking they’d be safe there found dead, mass graves, rampant looting, endless wreckage and chaos.
You’d think a country that faces more than twenty typhoons every year would be more or less used to these disasters, but used to it, we are not. Every new hurricane still manages to catch us unguarded. Sendong, Milenyo, Frank, the list goes on and on, each new typhoon serving a hard blow to the spirit of the Filipino people. Thousands of casualties each year, but instead of building better awareness among citizens and owning up to their mistakes, politicians take to pointing fingers after every national calamity, not wanting to be weighed down by the blame for masses of deaths and millions in property destroyed.
The Philippine archipelago has one of the longest coastlines in the world, the ocean is a great source of our people’s livelihood and many of our economy’s driving products are from the sea, tourism in our country is bolstered mainly by our numerous beaches. But we sit at a very precarious area, at the vanguard of the Pacific Ocean where most hurricanes originate and gain momentum, our islands always in the path of storms and typhoons.
Studies have shown that we may not be among the top contributors to climate change in the world, but we are one of the most susceptible to its harmful effects. The Super Typhoon used to be a rare occurrence, now we are subjected to major Tropical Cyclone Alerts annually.
The first step in the right direction is always education. Lack of disaster preparedness and awareness is one of the reasons why typhoon after typhoon continues to bring the Filipino people to their knees. Citizens need to be properly oriented on the steps that need to be undertaken prior to storm signals, the kits and supplies that need to be stored for emergencies, and how to safely transfer to the mandatory evacuation sites. The efficient dissemination of information and announcements could prevent hundreds of deaths caused by ignorance and negligence. The internet has proven its worth in this area and text messaging and local community disaster teams hold plenty of potential.
And most importantly, our national government needs to strengthen its resolve and plan of action for calamities expected or not. Government channels have proven to be again and again slow and ineffective in times of emergency, a lack of coordination, coupled with party line conflicts and political favors being put in to play, bring disaster relief operations to a screeching halt. These trying times should not be viewed as a means to gain campaign leverage, instead it should foster unity and camaraderie in the service of the Filipino people.
Climate Change adaptation and mitigation should also be an integral part of our education system. If taught at a young age the struggles we’ll face with our climate growing more and more unpredictable, a new generation of environmentally-aware individuals could lead the way to preventing even more damage to our eco-system.
Lastly, we all need to have a hand in caring for our environment. At this point, every little contribution counts in stopping climate change. Recycle, conserve electricity, develop new and innovative ways to reduce the strain we put on our earth. Pledge to help spread the need to combat pollution, participate in restoring our coastlines, and discourage actions that have damaging consequences to our environment.
The Philippines is blessed with the generosity of the sea, we are the Pearl of the Orient, once called the land of the golden sunset, and our waters provide us with commerce, tourism, livelihood, and nourishment. From our ancestors to today, we continue to reap the bounty of the ocean. It is important we keep in mind to take care of her, our waters, as she has done for us for all these years, because when angered, she can very easily take it all back./PN
