THE winds from the southeast – the “habagat” – which brought floods in the last few months have now been replaced by winds from the Pacific Ocean in the east. Soon, within a few more weeks, the easterlies will give way in turn to the northeast winds – the “amihan.”
In the midst of so many news reports dominated by high prices and government efforts to keep them in check, this announcement made this week by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) is greatly welcomed. For it is a sign that the cool weather of November and December will soon be here – along with the events associated with this season of pleasant weather.
This has been a particularly stormy year for our country, with a series of typhoons coming one after the other from the Pacific. Most of them swerved north to hit Japan, Korea, and China, but their mere presence northeast of Luzon served to intensify the “habagat” monsoon winds from the southwest which dumped so much rain and caused floods in many parts of the country. One – “Ompong” – directly hit Northern Luzon, killing at least 81 and destroying billions of pesos worth of crops.
At the same time, in many other parts of the planet, equally severe weather was wreaking havoc on the land – prolonged heat waves, floods and landslides, cyclones and hurricanes. The world’s scientists blame the rising world temperatures due to increasing industrial pollution.
But the basic succession of seasons in our country continues. After the hot summer came the rainy season. And now, PAGASA announced, the winds of the “amihan” will soon be blowing from the colder regions of the far north.
These winds usually begin coming in late October, bringing about the cold weather that hits its peak in January and February. This is also the Christmas season so loved by most Filipinos, who look forward to the “Simbang Gabi” and the joy associated with the holiday season.
If only for the hopeful expectation that comes with this season, we welcome PAGASA’s announcement that soon the “amihan” will be here. And with it comes our hope that the many problems that we now face – the high prices of goods, the shortage of some basic food items like rice, the endless traffic jams, etc. – will soon be over.
