Four days after it was announced that Tacloban City would be under quarantine, I remembered Christian and his family who live on the mountainside in the outskirts of our town. They are one of the poorest among the poor. They are four siblings. His father is a tricycle driver while his PWD (person with disability) mother works in Manila as a housemaid to support their needs. When I visited them, they were very happy that I remembered them in this time of crisis. The father was in tears when we handed over to them rice and some canned goods. After two weeks, when I and some friends went back to bring more supplies to them, we discovered that they had not yet received any relief from their barangay (village). The father exclaimed, “Maupay pa kamo ikaduha ba hatag pero amo barangay wa pa gud kami katatagi” (Good that you came here again to bring us something, our barangay hasn’t given us anything yet).
In another instance, I chanced upon seven construction workers from Cebu who had been stranded in our barangay. From time to time I would bring them supplies from my friends and the Focolare community. I also provided masks for them. In one of the relief distributions, they became volunteer frontliners, for they helped transport the goods and also helped in repacking them. So, they have been “adopted” by our barangay, being beneficiaries of relief goods.
One day, at 2 p.m. I saw a food delivery boy in a corner where buko (coconut) juice is sold. I asked him if he had already eaten lunch. He said, “Not yet, Sir. Magutom na ngani, wa pa ako naka-lunch” (I am already hungry because I didn’t have lunch yet). When I handed him a food pack and something to drink, he was surprised. His haggard face turned into a happy and lively one. I can still picture the big smile on his face! He said, “Damo gud nga salamat!” (Thank you very much!). The two buko vendors, to whom I handed packed lunches, also expressed their incredulity and joy: “Sir, libre la gud ini!? Salamat madamo, sir!” (Sir, is this for free? Thank you very much!)
Hearing about the discrimination experienced by our frontliners, I was even more motivated to help them with the generous assistance of friends, some youth of the Focolare, and other members of the Movement. We prepared food packs and drinks just to assure them that we are one with them in this battle against COVID-19 and that we heal as one. We felt we needed to put into practice now more than before the spirit of bayanihan.[1] In every hospital, checkpoint, and barangay we visited, the packed meals we delivered were received with so much gratitude. But we even went beyond our plan to reach out to the frontliners, for we also had the chance to attend to the needs of those who are most in need, those who have lost their livelihood during the lockdown.
All in all, we were able to distribute 1,207 food packs and drinks, 280 washable masks, and 50 surgical masks to our valiant frontliners, while we ourselves observed health protocols to be safe and to love others even more.
Our adventure to love those in need didn’t end there. When I saw the post and interview of the mayor of Tarangnan, Samar, calling for assistance, and shared it with friends, they immediately helped me gather relief goods. In just a short time, we were able to send help and reach out to a cancer patient who needed to undergo blood transfusion. Furthermore, we found so many other concrete ways to be of service to people who are greatly affected by this pandemic.
Doing all these things to love my neighbor, I experienced God’s love in His promise of a hundredfold blessing through the concrete love of the local community members of the Focolare in Tacloban. One day, I was surprised to find a pack containing a hundred calamansi (Philippine lime) outside our front door. They were given to me so that I could prepare a healthy drink to boost my immune system and fight COVID-19.
Aside from this, a medical doctor sent me fruits and vitamins. Now, together with my batchmates in high school, we are preparing to donate 60 units of Personal Protective Equipment to a COVID-19 testing center. And just two weeks ago, I received a small amount of money, enough to restart my small business, which is selling fresh fruit juice. But this is not just to generate income for myself, but to be of service to others. It is a small business for a cause! As it took off, several have also shown support for it, small gestures like telling me to “keep the change.”
I’ve truly experienced the love of God, He is so good! More and more, I feel that I need to be rooted in the present moment where His will is manifested. All these experiences are not just mine, they are a collective expression of a people who have decided to put love into practice, to love Jesus in all those we meet. I am just another frontliner running errands of love!
Renam Estrada[1] A Filipino word that refers to a spirit of communal unity and cooperation.
