Record the Storms

A collective of stories of the same event is a must!

Listening to: Rain by Patty Griffin

I meant to place aside all other writing projects until my Hajj Series was complete. But last night the rain poured so heavily that it reminded me how important it is to be in the present and record the weather. 

Here in Substack, writer Miss Kennedy (a writer of food and culture) wrote three beautiful pieces on weather and food and why we should do record rain and storm. Please check out her articles Climate Nausea, Writing the Weather, and On Hurricanes.

I've been influenced. Especially important is to hone a powerful feature of literature: to zoom in to the self, to the individual. How do the passing storms, the hurricanes, and the on-going floods affect us personally? How does it affect our livelihood? Our families, friends, and to us small businesses, the few people that we currently employ?

rain at the market

Here are some facts:

1. That I am writing this today, the 26th of October;
2. That the tropical depression Kristine (international name Trami) entered the PAR (Philippine Area of Responsibility) on the 21st of October, 2024. 
3. A tropical depression is generally considered the weakest form of a storm. The next levels are a typhoon, followed by a hurricane.

There was already rain in Small Town before the reported entry of Kristine. On the 20th, it rained from around 1:45 PM until 4:00 PM. On Monday, it rained from around 7:00 PM until 8:30 PM, with a short power outage during the rain of approximately half an hour. We experienced a couple of downpours on the 22nd, 4:30 AM until 5:00 AM and 9:30 AM until 10:00 AM. The weather remained undecided from that day until the 24th. We experienced some glimpses of sunlight, but it was mostly cool blue clouds, dark horizons, and cooler winds. 

Last night, it was heavy, heavy rain. It began around 4:00 PM in the late and continued way until 11:00 PM. Seven hours of downpour. Despite our 14-hour shift everyday, some days or nights we really do have to stay open. Many people will need candles, mosquito coils, and canned goods or noodles if the markets would get flooded. We closed just after midnight last night.

We opened the store right on time (6:00 AM). My two boys are healthy and alright. But they have what we all used to have in our adolescent era, the overconfidence of youth, which I, nearing my forties, am super wary of. I practically screamed at them when, last night wading through an ankle-deep flood, they went inside the house and straight to their bedrooms.

"OUT! To the washroom and wash your feet with soap!" They smiled like fools. It makes me cringe at the thought of us walking through rat and cat and dog piss and poop. 

Small Town (the downtown area) is just okay. Kids are still stupid enough to dance and play in the rain, and their parents are still stupid enough to permit them. There was an electric post that fell down and ankle-to-knee-deep flooding in scattered areas. The situation is more worrisome in mountainous barangays (districts) where there have been reported flash floods. 

Right now it's somewhat business as usual. But people are unusually quiet. I suppose that's to be expected. The white walls of the mosque have begun to shine a little brighter, though there is no obvious sunlight. Still somber atmosphere.

I know Luzon and many parts of Visayas have it really tough. The government has been announcing all week of suspended classes and government work. Despite the monstrous damage, we’re just the slightest bit luckier than the other islands. But what makes us grievous most of all is that maybe Kristine will revisit the Philippines and that the storm Leon (international name Kong-rey— and one more— will follow.

I'm urging everyone to record the weather. Be witnesses to what is happening. Like what it was during the pandemic, we must produce a collective of stories, one too big to ignore, so that the government will take further action.

Thank you for reading. 

P.S.

11:35 A.M. - Strong winds and dark clouds are here again.

11:37 A.M. - Currently raining.

Stay safe!

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