Come to Sunday school, Come to Sunday school
Every Sunday morning, Come to Sunday school…
Children’s voices reverberated in the neighborhood as the ringing of the church bell faded signalling the start of the weekend activity.
Sunday school was something we – about two or three dozens of us – looked forward to, especially because it was a lively package of songs, stories and surprises, like occasional gifts and snacks when someone was celebrating a birthday.
Oh, the stories were interesting, particularly when our teacher showed visuals that filled in what our imagination could hardly fathom about the characters and scenes she narrated.
Noah’s Ark and the Great Flood was an all-time favorite with the account of a giant boat loaded with pairs of animals and the Patriarch’s family which sailed for 40 days and nights before the deluge ended.
About five years ago, I came face to face with the life size replica of the ark in a theme park in Hong Kong.
With the animals standing beside it, the ark was imposing even by modern standards.
Other stories may not have been so graphic but they were filled with wonder and awe, like the first miracle performed by Jesus Christ when he miraculously turned water into wine in a wedding at Cana.
And there was that thought-provoking account of a Samaritan woman’s iconic encounter with Jesus at a well that led to her redemption as accounted in the Gospel of John Chapter 4.
These particular stories flashed in my mind as I realized that Tuesday this week (March 22) will be marked as World Water Day. Of course, there are still many other interesting Biblical stories, like Jesus and his disciples’ experiences on the Sea of Galilee, but I well reserve them for another occasion, like the World Oceans Day.
WWD highlights the importance of fresh water and raises awareness of the lack of access of at least 2 billion people to safe and potable water.
It also advocates for the sustainable management of the world’s fresh water resources.
This year’s celebration focuses on the theme: “Groundwater –Making the Invisible Visible”. It explains “the vital role of groundwater in water and sanitation systems, industry, ecosystems and climate change adaptation.”
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With the gradual opening of tourism doors in many parts of the country, I reiterate the idea of staging more festivals to attract visitors again toward the economic recovery of LGUs, including my hometown – Cauayan.
Tagum City in Davao del Norte, where I found out that the place has about 10 or more festivals year-round.
I had earlier expressed the idea of having the Water Festival in Cauayan, in addition to the ongoing Lubay-lubay Festival in January.
Cauayan aptly deserves the Water Town claim for at least three reasons:
First, it has about 50 kms. of shorelines from the northern to the southernmost barangay, perhaps also the longest in the region or in the Visayas.
Second, Cauayan has nine major rivers, one of the most if not the most number found in Negros Island.
Third, it is home to about 10 waterfalls located in five or six upland barangays with more than half of them having great ecotourism potentials, including Banilad in the Abaca-Lumbia area, which, I understand, is being developed for travel promotion purposes.
I hope that the Cauayan LGU will see the significance and pragmatism of this suggestion toward a more vibrant tourism program.
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Truly, water is life. Can you imagine a world devoid of springs, rivers and oceans and all its organisms to sustain our lives?
More than that we are blessed with the promise of life eternal if we choose to quench our thirst from the Spring of the Living Water – in Jesus Christ – which we learned as early as those Sunday schools of yesteryears.
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He said to me: “It is done, I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty, I will give you water without cost from the spring of the living water of life.” (Revelation 21:6) – NWI
