Wednesday, January 14, 2015

A Haiyan Survivor's Tribute

Angelika drew as she told me
what she had gone through.
I listened with my heart beating so fast.
I am one blessed mother! (Check out our video.)
This is my first entry for the year 2015 and half of the month of January has already passed. It's hard keeping up, though, I would love to blog or write more often. I want to start this year on a happy note.

I had been thinking about putting a video into one of my blogs. However, since I'm not diligent in capturing moments on videos or even on photographs, it has been pretty difficult for me to do so. Recently, though, I uploaded a video of me and Angelika singing a tribute to God for His amazing grace, not only in my daughter's life, but also in mine and the whole family; and a friend suggested that I try to upload it here too. Blogger though has a limit for the size of the video and since I'm technologically-challenged I wasn't able to upload it. I'm sharing instead the video from Facebook.

More than a year has passed since typhoon Haiyan wrecked havoc in my family's life. A year spent trying to find peace, seek joy and live in hope. A year adjusting to living without the people dear to us. A year trying to find our footing in the new life we've been given. Now, it's time to let go of what has been and thank God for what He has done and is doing now.

But before that, let's look back. In the photo above, Angelika tried to describe through her drawings what she and her cousins had gone though. Words cannot describe the harrowing experience that they've been through in that monstrous storm. (Though I tried to in my post Beyond the Storm: Hope.) Notice how she drew the "waves" as she calls it. It's towering over them. The figure at the bottom is her cousin Julianna who was swept far from them. Angelika said Julianna was happy because Lance (the figure on the left) helped her. She described how tired they were after 'climbing and climbing' (and climbing, probably meaning to say 'crawling') on the debris of woods. She also mentioned how scared she was.

She was not the only one scared. I was too. I was afraid, so afraid, that I had lost her. That's why I will forever be grateful to God for giving her back to me.

And here, is Amazing grace! (Click the link to see my daughter singing about God's amazing grace.) Wondrous grace. Marvelous grace. It has saved my daughter. It has helped me through.

This song speaks volumes of our experience and it is only through God's grace that she was saved from the waters and brought back into my arms. It is only through His grace that we get to sing this song together. I hope you praise God with us as you watch this.

Amazing Grace by John Newton (1725-1807)

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
(We) have already come
'Tis Grace that brought (us) safe thus far
and Grace will lead (us) home.

When we've been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we've first begun.




You may also like to read...



Nothing is Impossible with God
Beyond the Storm: Faith
Motherhood

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