MY PERSONAL TALE OF TRAGEDY, COURAGE AND SURVIVAL

Does anyone of you here encounter a near-death experience? If so, does anyone of you here today ask, what’s the purpose of your existence after that horrendous experience? Sometimes, if not all the times, experiences – whether good or bad – shape every person to become the very person that he is now and the person that he can become tomorrow.

Cateel Bay, Sunrise 2010

Like everyone else here, I am a product of my own experience and this experience had once tested my will to survive and my capabilities to face what lies ahead.

Cateel in 2010. 2 years before Typhoon Pablo

On December 4, 2012, my beautiful hometown of Cateel in the Province of Davao Oriental was severely hit by a tropical cyclone that was said to be the strongest and the most destructive typhoon ever to hit that year. And that was Typhoon Pablo.

This is me growing up in my beloved hometown of Cateel

My beloved family

My high school barkada

The three idiotd of Cateel

Graduated high school one year after Typhoon Pablo

My basketball teammates in Cateel

Typhoon Pablo, like a monster, came to frighten us on that sad morning. It came to destroy and destruct not only our homes, our livelihood but it also came to slaughter our people – me, included. Never in our wildest dreams that we will encounter such demonic disaster. As per history, my town never experienced such grave calamity. So before that sad day, all of us, took shelter in the comfort and safety of our homes. We were thinking Typhoon Pablo was just like those regular amihan winds that we used to experience during December. But what we didn’t know, Pablo was summoned to destroy everything that we have at home.

Images of Cateel after Typhoon Pablo

When the first wave of the strong wind battered our home, I can feel the concrete wall shook. It was strong. We were all at the second floor of our house. And then second wave of the strong wind came. This time, it is more horrendous. The roof of house was swayed and devoured by the disastrous wind. We were beginning to cry. We were so frightened. We were praying but it seemed like prayers weren’t the answers at that time. I have to find place to secure myself and my family to survive such catastrophe. But when we started moving to find a safer place, the strongest wind seemed to become unstoppable. And then it started to whistle. I never knew winds can whistle. But the whistling signaled a more disastrous wind. The shaking of our house continued. It was becoming unbearable. This wasn’t earthquake but this is more frightening that tremors. This is tropical cyclone that we were never prepared to face. We wanted to save our things, our homes but the winds were powerful we were all hopeless and powerless that all we can do was just wait for our sad fate that very dawn.

Taken October 2012, two months before Typhoon Pablo

No one’s ready for his or her death. No one even wish to die such kind of death. But when you are already faced when such kind of disaster, all you can do was just to close your eyes, say a prayer, ask for forgiveness and let God decide for your fate. I let God decided my fate that early morning. I was very young then to experience such tremendous event. But I took courage to leave to God my life that day.

Taken in 2013, 5 months after Typhoon Pablo.

Took a vacation in Gingoog City to unwind and destress

And then finally the last wave of the most devastating winds came, this time, it was the most destructive. Our two-storey home crushed down into pieces bringing down all those who took shelter at the second floor – including my whole family. And when the house collapsed, it was me who suffered the most serious injuries as the concrete wall fell off towards me. I was covered entirely by the debris of the shattered wall. I cannot move. My legs numb. My body numbed. It was unbearable. It was excruciatingly painful.  And I thought, here I go, this is it, this is my fate – to die that day. I was crying. I was sobbing. I was helpless. I was crying for help but who can help me when everybody that time needed help.

One hour passed, I was still under the heavy concrete wall. I was beginning to accept my fate and tell myself that it is okay to die. But in my heart I still prayed to God to give me a second chance. To give me hope to live. To be alive. To have the courage to survive. I was praying. And it was answered. Two hours after, like a light from heaven, help came. Some good natured people came to rescue me and some of my family members. It was a hard work but they managed to take me out from the rubble where I was stuck and immediately sought for medical help. And so the rest is history.

Presenting my beautiful and happy family!

My loving family

And these folks survived Typhoon Pablo - Papa, Mama and Papay

Ate Bianca and Yong-yong

Christmas 2015

Christmas 2015

Today, everytime I see the scars of these wounds I got from that disastrous morning, I get to be reminded of this precious second life that is given to me. I am reminded by these scars that life is a gift that I should cherish, take care and love. That it is just being lent to us and can be taken away from us anytime God wants it. The scars are great reminders that I was given a second life and that I should take care of it and nurture it.

My and my Brother Yong-yong days after Typhoon Pablo

Typhoon Pablo caused so much damage and pains to me and to my people but it teaches me in a way that we should take courage even at the downiest points in our lives. That we should never lose hope even during the strongest storms of our lives – that there is hope, there is beautiful life a head. And like every storm, there is a beautiful rainbow.

My loving family. My course of strength and courage.
I love them so much!

All of us have different storms in our lives. But if we try to work hard and hope for the best and pray harder to make our lives better, there will never be strong storms stronger than us because we can be stronger than the storms we will encounter.

I am John Alemar Desabille. I am survivor. This is my story of survival, courage and hope.