I.

We are in grave danger.

For days the radio has been talking about a monster hurricane that is headed straight for us.  The hurricane is a Category 5, the worst of the worst, with winds in excess of 200 miles an hour and flooding, torrential rains that could very easily wipe out anything and evyerthing in its path.

We see the signs: the animals and birds are getting restless and are heading towards higher ground.  Even the insects of the ground are scuttling away, to get to shelter.  The clouds are racing in from the east and the winds are increasing by the hour.  We have done all we can to secure our home and possessions as best as possible, but I highly doubt that we will get through this storm without losing something (or someone).

I feel it in my gut.  And what I feel is mainly fear and uncertainty.

I have been in enough of these storms to know that they mean business.  I have lost loved ones or friends as a result of these powerful storms from the sea and I am not taking any chances.  My family's lives are at stake and I will do everything humanly possible to ensure their survival.

II.

The hurricane's name is Haiyan.  She is a beast, with nothing but death, desolation, and catastrophic devastation on her mind.  If we survive, no, if anybody survives, it will be a miracle.  But I am not holding my breath.

Right now it's just me and my little family: my wife, Yacinthia, and our five children: Reynaldo, Juliana, Paco, Benito, and Giovanna, who are 12, 10, 6, 3, and 2 months.  They are my heart, my world; if I were to lose any one of them, I think I would go mad with grief.  And now suddenly our lives are threatened, and to tell you the truth, I am shaking-scared.  My wife and I have been in storms, but the children, especially the littler ones, have not; they don't know what lies ahead for them.

Just keep us in your prayers; it's all we (or anybody, really) can do.  

~To be continued!~