“We’ve been here for almost two weeks,” said 8-year-old Monica whose family evacuated to Calumbang Elementary School. Despite having a lot of playmates in the evacuation center, Monica couldn’t help but feel sad and miss home.
According to studies, being displaced by natural disasters can cause a lot of stress and trauma to children. Reya Abreiu, Treasurer of Barangay Calumpang shares, “a lot of kids are crying and repeatedly expressing their desire to return home.”
When heavy ash clouds from Taal Volcano’s eruption covered its towns and cities and earthquakes became more frequent, thousands of Batangueños were forced to leave their homes and move to the nearest evacuation centers.
Operation Blessing staged a Superbook event for displaced children in Calumpang to minister and give comfort to displaced children in Calumbang to minister, encourage, and help the kids process what they are going through. The kids played games, received goodies, and got the chance to sing and dance with their favorite robot friend, Gizmo.
A film showing of Superbook’s “Job” episode was one of the activities that the kids truly appreciate. Job lost his children and wealth in a series of calamities and tragedies, but he didn’t question God. Instead, Job chose to trust and love the Lord. Later, God restored Job and blessed him with a double portion of everything he had lost.
“I’ve learned not to blame God for bad situations. We should always pray to God and love Him with our whole heart,” said Monica.
“Superbook has helped a lot! As you can see, the kids really had a lot of fun. It shifted their focus from our current situation. They were given hope to start again,” Reya shared.
The Taal eruption may have dampened the spirits of the families especially children, but through Job’s story, they learned that there is a God they can trust and rely on. There is a reason to hope again, a new beginning for our future generation.
