Just One Last Look
Contributed by Rosanna Javier, Operation Blessing Volunteer Writer
Guihulngan, Negros Oriental - Nerry Mahinay, 56, and her twelve year old daughter Jenezel were just out for a walk that February 6 afternoon. As they were walking down the slopes of Upper Mu-og in Planas, Guihulngan, mother and daughter held hands, talked and looked at each other not knowing it was going to be their last.
The 6.9 earthquake in Guihulngan last February 6 triggered a massive landslide in mountainous Mu-og. Nerry and Jenezel locked hands and run for their lives. Nerry’s feet were caught in the fence and she fell flat on her face. But when she rose, Jenezel was no longer by her side. In just under 20 seconds, the landslide claimed her precious youngest child. She never saw exactly how that happened.
A day short of two weeks after the death of Jenezel, Operation blessing found the grieving mother busily purchasing and stacking banana produce from Planas banana farmers in their storage shack. With her were her daughters and grandchildren. Manang Nerry was in a very pensive mood. The Mahinays were not only grieving the loss of their homes and Jenezel but of their grandfather, too.
The eighty year old Azur Mahinay was recovered from the landslide debris. The old man had his arms wrapped around his house post when the Makati rescuers recovered him. His body was the last of four corpses who were found in the 6 kilometer landslide site were 22 Mu-og residents met their deaths.
Manang Nerry frets that her daughter Jenezel’s body has not been found yet. She would have wanted to give her a ‘proper burial’ but attempts to retrieve the bodies have stopped as the Guihulngan City Council passed a resolution declaring Planas village as a memorial ground for those who died in the landslide.
Operation Blessing had been in Barangay Planas twice since the quake to distribute food packs of rice, noodles and sardines. Her daughters said that the children have been noticeably happier and more at peace after OB’s stress debriefing with the kids. Manang Nerry says, “Maaring mas naging mahirap at mabigat ang mga dala-dalahin namin kung wala kaming tulong na natanggap sa inyo”.
Manang Nerry doesn’t understand and hasn’t quite reconciled with the suddenness of her child’s death. She still struggles with uncertainties regarding her family’s future. She has been drawing near to God asking for wisdom in helping their family get back on their feet again. Operation Blessing prayed with the family asking God to reassure the Mahinays of God’s abiding love and provision.
Manang Nerry, a former barangay captain of Planas, also carries in her heart the deaths of her former constituents. She is concerned about the livelihood of Mu-og farmers now that their farms have gone and they still have nowhere to plant crops again. Being the barangay’s nutrition worker, Nerry is looking into having a barangay school-based feeding program, something she hopes to work on with Operation Blessing as a partner. She may never set eyes on even her daughter’s bones again but at the very least she could see other children’s bodies less frail.
