What are survivors of Typhoon Haiyan thankful for this year?
The following list is a collection of items, characteristics of life, people, and much much more that survivors can’t help but be thankful for this Thanksgiving.
1. Our Children – the future. The children who will live on for years to come, remembering the challenges we’ve overcome, representing our family, and making a new life for generations.
2. Friends – the people who have stood by us through it all. In the first weeks they checked in on us, they shared their relief goods and their hope for the future. Our friends helped us never give up on rebuilding our lives.
3. Family – the people who will be there with us no matter what, literally. Those who were able to survive the horrendous challenges and have helped us every step of the way, these are the people we call family. Today we are thankful for their presence in our lives.
4. Life – in its purest form. As survivors we are most simply happy to be alive. Happy to see the palms swanging in the wind, happy to see the children playing in the street. The island of Leyte is no longer overwhelmed with death, but instead infiltrated with life.
5. A roof – an often taken for granted necessity. We are grateful for the individuals who helped ensure we had a roof over our heads.
6. Music – whether for entertainment or inspiration, we can’t help but be thankful for the gift of music. Providing us with a method of sharing our experiences, an avenue of expression, a guide through the ups and downs.
7. Pancit – Long Life. A local noodle dish in the Philippines, survivors are happy to look to the future with hopes for a very, very long life.
8. Electricity – the ability to string Christmas lights, wake up in the night without fear, share moments as the day comes to a close. We cannot help but remember how many millions of families went without electricity in the past year, and we are grateful to have stable access to this resource now.
9. Normalcy – along with electricity, the essentials have been restored to help us return to a NEW normal. The power to overcome anything in our paths to discover normalcy in its new form.
10. Re-establishment of Stores – food is an essential component to survival. Access to goods and food security were of utmost concern in the past few months.
11. INGO support – without these incredible organizations millions of people would remain hungry and homeless. We give a special thanks to every INGO, from World Vision, to UNICEF, to Save the Children, to All Hands Volunteers this Thanksgiving.
This holiday season we challenge everyone to contribute to rebuilding lives, supporting communities, and assisting with ongoing projects in the Philippines by Taking the GoAbroad Foundation Pledge now.
Check out how the GoAbroad Foundation Gave Thanks Last Year: