Psalm 93:3
King James Version
3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their waves.
My country, the Philippines, probably has the cutest shape.
Her shape has always reminded me of a dog sitting on its haunches.
As an archipelago, she is surrounded by bodies of water.
There's the vast Pacific Ocean to her left, the South China Sea to her west, the Philippine Sea to her east, and Celebes Sea to her south.
We also have our "submarine" trench, the famous/infamous "Philippine Deep".
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize she can be under the mercy of waters.
And this, we are, especially half of the year.
Actually, for sometime now, it's mostly the wet season.
The dry season -- summer -- has gotten shorter.
But thank GOD for only two seasons to deal with.
It's something that's easy to "master".
Except my country seem to have not mastered it yet.
Still, my country is a hardy nation, with friendly people, who have braved the rainy season, the storms, and the monsoon season.
Oftentimes, it's that monsoon season that is tougher than the stormy season.
The storms often augment the monsoon's power.
A couple of weeks ago, my high city to the north has endured two months of non-stop rain, and storms.
The people groaned, "When will this stop?"
The lowlanders groaned, too.
Our dams had to release water because of the volume of rains.
Our mountains released water through rivers, creeks, ditches, and it all flowed to the lowlands.
As you can imagine, much flooding, and destruction, occurred.
It has been so, all the years of my life.
But towns, and cities, became more populated.
Mayors, and governments, approve all that expansion.
But maybe, they had not prioritized town, and city planning.
Do they have a master plan at all?
Maybe, they built houses, rerouting drainage systems.
Or maybe over the drainage system itself.
Judging by the volume of water with no exit, those may be so.
And when they start building high-rises, and malls, there go the drainage for neighboring towns.
We all know water seeks its own level.
We all know she has a mind of her own.
Stop her one way, and she'll find another.
Close off her exit, and she'll merely rise.
If garbage is stuck in the exits, you can expect flooding.
I traveled to the south a few days ago.
I could not believe the murkiness of a large bay.
What has happened to its former beauty?
Now, there are many developments around it.
Of course, it's probably also reflecting the dark sky at 4:00 p.m.
It felt like 7:00 p.m.
And yes, it was raining as I neared my destination.
But I was spared from experiencing what locals reported were floods to the knee.
It doesn't take a genius to determine that water must have an exit.
Where else does it exit but to the sea?
If we keep it inland, you can imagine what it would do to homes, and villages.
The city is clogged with homes, buildings, and developments.
The drains are clogged with garbage.
Would officials' brains be clogged with debris, too?
Is that why they allow contractors to build randomly, and surreptitiously?
I studied architecture.
The government imposed a "building code".
I know about zoning, and such.
I especially love "plumbing", and "electrical" studies.
You may have a pretty home, but if those aren't wisely planned, you'd have problems.
"Structural" stuff I left to the civil engineers.
It's not one of my strengths.
As born again watchman, my strength is the HOLY SPIRIT.
He teaches me all I need to know now, regarding past, present, and future.
He teaches me GOD's ways, versus man's ways.
All is made clear by SPIRIT.
When you open your faucet, water empties down the drain.
It exits through drainage systems.
Imagine if it can't exit.
Your house gets flooded, too.
All that filth and sewage will back up.
Imagine a whole town, or province, experiencing floods.
You will not want to wade in deep water.
There are currents, garbage, and rat droppings.
Even snakes.
So, when I hear of government contractors being held accountable now, I think to myself, it's something that ought to have been done 60 years ago.
What should have been addressed was proper planning, drainage, and zoning, for an expanding population.
Here, alone, is a very telling fact:
"As of July 1, 2024, the Philippines had a population of 112,729,484.[11] More than 60 percent of the country's population live in the coastal zone[475] and in 2020, 54 percent lived in urban areas."
-- Wikipedia
If greed, and self-propagation, were not part of the equation, flood control would have focused on "prevention".
It's really all about foresight, not poor sight.
May government officials wake up.
Too many people have suffered already.
May law makers abide by what JESUS taught us:
John 13:34-35
King James Version
34 A new commandment I give unto you,
That ye love one another; as I have loved you,
that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know
that ye are my disciples,
if ye have love one to another.
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