It was about 3:00 am when we
departed Leyte to reach San Andres, Borongan, Samar together with some military
officers to accompany us in reaching the place and bringing the goods for the
people to share. I and the rest of the sisters arrived at about 8:00am in
Borongan. I was too excited to cross the river. I thought that when we reached
the other side, we will start the program right away, but to my surprise we
will be trekking 3 mountains going up and down. I actually worried if I can
because I grew up the islet and never had an ample experience of climbing
mountains. With so much effort in the said mission, we arrived at our
destination at about 11:00 am.
We’ve started the program. We
gave what we brought. When it was about to finish, an old woman approach if I
had taken my lunch. “Not yet, but we will eat soon”, I replied. And she said
that she’s from lower San Andres (that means another mountain to trudge going
up and going down) and hasn’t taken breakfast yet because they don’t have
something to cook. Their crops had been washed away by the typhoon. It is as if
my heart were crushed while listening to her. But rather than shedding tears in
front of her, I opened my bag and gave her my lunch for her breakfast.
I was disturbed and ask God
for the strength to trek the 3 mountains again with a hungry stomach. But He
sent another sister who shares her lunch with me.
I took into my heart all the
things that I’ve seen in the place and pondered silently on the events. My
conversation with Lola has never gone out of my mind. It has left me a vivid
example on practical solution when “the hungry” comes to us as we traverse this
life— that is letting go of what we have and let God do something for us.
St. Augustine, our father
gave us an example of eliminating the poor’s plight in church of Hippo. He
emphasized that we touch Christ when we help poor people, and that the poor
people are the porters who transfer the wealth of the rich people from earth to
heaven. He declared: "God made the
poor to test the rich" (Sermon 39, 4, 6. PL 38, 243), but this was not
said to support poverty, but to exhort the faithful to perform works of mercy.
In
his regulation that we, the Augustinian Recollect, followed, He speaks of
fasting and abstinence with the virtue of discretion. One that afflicts the body beyond measure may be said to
slay a fellow - citizen; while another who pampers it with overmuch delicacy,
supports an enemy. The flesh must therefore be so nourished that it may be able
to serve. We should bear witness to our vow of poverty. So when we fast, we can
give alms.
But “the hungry” comes to us
in two different forms. One that is of temporal things, the other is about the
spiritual things. The latter, I believe, we all yearn.
Blessed
are we for it is written " Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after
justice, for they shall have their fill." Only
by such yearning that one becomes worthy to be satiated. We must then first
exercise our heart in desiring and hungering after God's Word, so that divine
grace may come to pervade our whole being, to refresh us with spiritual savor
and sweetness. As the soul is of more account than the body, we ought rather to
seek gratification in the food of the soul.
When we meet someone of our kin, one who, like us hunger
for God’s Word, let us not forget to burn our hearts for them and let God reign
among us.
