Sunshine after the rain

So it's been several days since Metro Manila and nearby provinces had been hit by the Southwest Monsoon ("Hanging Habagat") that brought on floods that caused a lot of devastation especially in those hard-hit areas. I myself wasn't able to go to work from Tuesday to Thursday because, coming from Sampaloc and going to Eastwood, the main thoroughfares that I would be passing through were heavily flooded.

Alas, on Friday, the sun was already shining and I was finally able to go back to work. While on my way to Cubao (this was the first time I went out of the house since the floods), I realized that when you see the sun finally shining after having a few gloomy days (which, to be honest, is quite an understatement in our case), you can't help but firmly believe that there's always a silver lining... That God hasn't forsaken us, that the devastation we have survived from was merely a test of true faith.

I just wish I had taken a photo of when the sunlight made me smile that day.

Inked, marked, counted

Guess who was able to participate in the first ever automated elections in the Philippines? Yep, that's right, lil' ole me (with an accomplished grin on my face)! We went out before 7 in the morning since COMELEC announced that precincts will open by that time. We wanted to go early to avoid the rush of people but when we got to Ramon Magsaysay High School, there were already lots of people around and inside. The funny thing is, just after we got out of the house, literally just outside our gate there was already a woman handing us sample ballots with the candidates she's supporting. As expected, there were more of that when we got to the school.

I was extremely glad that for my first experience to vote, there was no hassle at all. When we got inside the school there was this big blackboard that's like a map and it's marked by barangay so we know where our precincts will be located. Our precinct was located at the third floor and when we got there, the queue was already in the 20's so we had to fall in line still despite being early. My dad, mom and I were #s 31-33 so we didn't have to wait that long anyway. So after filling up my ballot, I made my way to the PCOS machine and the first time I inserted my ballot it wasn't accepted, maybe because I didn't do it the right way cause I was sure that I did the shading thing very well. Thankfully, the second time around it finally read: "Congratulations! Your vote has been registered." Super arte lang pala talaga nung PCOS machine.

So yes, for the first time ever I was able to cast my vote for the national elections 2010 and I feel accomplished and thankful that nothing went wrong during my experience. I pray, as the elections are still on going, that for the rest of the day all transactions will be successful and that no crime will be done regarding the results. Also, I pray and hope that whoever wins the positions, especially the presidential one, we will actually try and be supportive of that candidate because we can never achieve anything without teamwork and cooperation throughout the whole country.

Yun lang po. All that's left to say is God bless the Philippines!!