Blue Moon

It’s a Blue Moon!

Blue Moon is a phenomenon wherein we experience two full moons in one month. It happens only once every three years, thus, the word ‘blue’ meaning rare.

The moon was shining bright, alright. But what could have been a beautiful night turned out to be one experience which could not be easily forgotten by anyone.

As UPians flocked to witness two events simultaneously held that night, a huge earthquake disrupted the night’s entertainment. It lasted long enough to scare people away and drive them out of the buildings. The 7.9 magnitude quake’s epicenter was in Eastern Samar and it was too strong that it reached my hometown in Mindanao. Tsunami alert levels were raised in Eastern Visayas and parts of Mindanao. My family back home already left for evacuation along with many of our fellowmen.

Meanwhile, in downtown Tacloban City, darkness reigned as power was still out. My housemates and I were told to prepare emergency things including blankets, clothes, flashlights, food and other valuables. So we did. We prayed and I know many other people out there did the same. We stayed up until electricity came back and the alert levels were lifted. Before going to sleep, we were warned of a possible aftershock, but as (kind of) expected, it did not come. There have been a number of Tsunami warnings in the past and, thankfully, it all came to pass without an actual Tsunami.

So, I guess, it is a reminder for all of us that sometimes a quake is just a quake. Maybe someday we’ll look back at this night and realize how little faith we have when we panicked instead of praying or how selfish we were when we prayed only for the safety of our loved ones and ourselves.

I hope we don’t flood heaven with prayers only once in a blue moon because every day we’re alive is reason enough to call on to God, thank Him for the gift of life and ask for His constant guidance.