The other day, Sister Aileen and I walked from the Cathedral to her home in Hin Dang after 5am mass. It seems we are always driving everywhere and I cannot tell you how many times I have wanted to ask whoever was driving to stop so I could get out and enjoy the view. I mean, God gave us such a beautiful world... we would be remiss if we didn't stop and enjoy it. Too bad every time we are in the car, it seems, we are on our way to feed people, teach people, give people piglets, etc. My desire for enjoying the beauty of the Philippines is a little further down on the list! However, in walking home from mass, about an 8 kilometer walk, I got to really enjoy the scenery around me.
My absolute favorite views are from the bridges... and Borongan has tons of bridges. The rippling water in constant motion, the bright colored fishing boats decorating the sea, the white frothiness from the ocean waves, the dark green leaves of the banana and coconut trees framing the waterways, the mountains looming in the distance... it is always a sight that takes my breath away. I enjoy the glances I get from inside the car, but to stop on our walk and get an eye-ful of beauty... I couldn't even talk to Sr. Aileen during those moments that my gaze was drinking in the sight. And yet...
And yet there are these homes built on the water, built there because the home owners have no money to afford land. So the homes are built on stilts and have homemade bridges connecting the homes to the stable land. The bridges are made of coconut tree trunks and look like a 5 year old's weight would make them collapse. I walked on one once and although they are stronger than they appear, I trepidasiously crossed the bridge saying lots of Hail Mary's!
Sometimes I comment on the beauty surrounding us... the ocean and rivers (Borongan has three rivers running through it), the mountains and hills, all of the colors and shapes that make up this Filipino landscape. To me, all I see is loveliness. But the other day, after commenting on the beauty and not hearing an immediate response about it, I began thinking of what these people see when they look at the land and the water; these people who have been through 2 devastating typhoons in the past two years. When they look at the glistening, foaming ocean are they filled with awe at the vastness of the sea connecting the world together, do they feel the peacefulness the water brings as the tides roll in and out, do they see beauty in the way the ocean mirrors the sky and adds to the overall awesomeness of the sight? Or are they filled with anxiety and fear at the death and destruction the monstrous waves can bring when being driven by the fierce winds of a typhoon. When they look at the mountains, do they see the majesty in their height and feel protected by the stability of their stance, do they spend long moments trying to make out each coconut tree dotting the slopes of the hills as I do? Or are they reminded of life taking landslides, cutting off help in the form of people and supplies to their towns? When they feel a cool breeze interrupting a sweltering afternoon or hear the pounding of the rain on their homes in one of the many storms that pass through during the days, are they appreciative of the cool gift of refreshment or are they counting the minutes to see if more stable shelter should be sought out?
They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, that each of us, depending on our experiences, sees the world and its surroundings differently. I wonder at the differences around me. Not only of the color of my skin, the way I talk, the way I dress even, but it goes still deeper into the way my brain processes what I see, feel and hear. And I begin to wonder if my comments on the beauty surrounding me are not painful thorns in the memories of past tragedies of these strong, resilient people. Or if commenting on the beauty of the sea without thought to the poor people who have no choice but to make the changeable, unstable sea the foundation of their homes isn't one of the worst things I could say. When you know and have personally experienced the horrific tragedies of nature at its fiercest, can you ever appreciate, admire and love the same surroundings in calm moments? Something to think about...
Certainly my outbursts of appreciation of my surroundings are immediate reactions to seeing something so beautiful I cannot believe my eyes, not attempts at causing painful memories to rise to the surface of people's consciousness. But perhaps that is just what it does. I never would have thought that expressing appreciation and awe over something breathtaking would be something I would have to think about before giving voice to it... but I find my mind opening more and more to the sensitivities to those around me. Is that good or overthinking it?
By the way... I've got some totally good news!! My American missionary friend, Mary Jane Trinkus, who was planning to come to the Philippines a little while ago but couldn't, is on her way here right now!!! She is coming unfortunately without her husband, Vic, but I am so excited for her visit, as is everyone here!! Mary Jane is a long-time missioner to the Oikos Community and there are not many people in Borongan who do not know her. We are all like WOOT! WOOT!
I have to also tell you that Mary Jane and her husband Vic just received the St. Francis Xavier Award for their missionary work from their Diocese, the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois, and the awards were presented by none other than Tom and Paula Radel, my missionary heroes, who, by the way, also received this award from the Buffalo Diocese a few years ago. See... I am surrounded by so many awesome people!! Congratulations to Mary Jane and Vic Trinkus!! I hope some of Mary Jane's awesomeness rubs off on me while she is here. I am told that from the time Mary Jane wakes up in the morning, she is on the go, on the move, searching out people to help, and goes until she drops at night. I hope she gives me a little time to keep you informed of what we are doing!! Please pray for a safe journey and visit for Mary Jane. Thanks!! xxoo
