Love our Countrymen and Love Our Country

I pray that we can all start to recognize our many failures and weaknesses but at the same time see that we have a lot of strengths. Two noticeable weaknesses in our culture are the lack of the correct form of nationalism and the extreme disappointment we have with our countrymen. I guess the former maybe borne from a lack of inherent identity. How can we say with certainty that we are proud of being Filipinos when we do not even know who we are -- are we Asians trying to be Westerners or Westerners trying to be Asians? It also bothers me to notice we can be very cynical about the attitudes of our countrymen. Not that there is nothing to be disappointed with, but are we blatantly misusing statistical inference, i.e. judging the whole on the basis of a sample? We must remember that many of our countrymen are poor!! We must not judge them too harshly. Many of them are concerned only about their day to day survival. When I visited Floridablanca years ago, I found it strange that jeepneys always passed through the gasoline station after each trip they make rather than go for a full tank. Little did I realize that they want to spend only what is needed so that they can bring home the rest of their earnings. Are we living in an illusion that this country is far better than the Philippines? (Not that I am saying that the Philippines is better than the US either -- that may itself be an illusion.) Are we expecting too much of the Philippines -- do we expect the kind of technology and comforts that the US offers to be in abundance back home when we can not even afford to feed more than eighty percent of our countrymen? Is it truly more joyful to live a comfortable life than to bear a life of trials and tribulations? To seek happiness in things that will not last forever or in those which ensure one's immortality? Some of you may undoubtedly feel that even if you wanted to go home, you could not survive as there are too many things beyond your control -- we have a corrupt system, etc., etc. But what have we truly done to combat these evils? I have noticed that sometimes the harshest critics of a system are the very same people who will not act when they should. Let us put our hands, our pockets, and whatever we can offer into where our mouth is. Then and only then can we truly say we have done what we could. There are some who have done this and who might feel that nothing has changed. On the other hand, you may be seeing only one perspective so do not feel discouraged! Changes often take more than a lifetime to build!! Do we not realize that the actions each of us take always bear fruit?! They always do. The only problem is that you may not see them. Not seeing something does not mean this something does not exist. Bear in mind that in spite of the many problems facing the Philippines, our countrymen still have survived. Prices of goods continue to increase exponentially yet (by the grace of the good Lord) we have managed to make ends meet. We are a talented people -- producing the likes of Lea Salonga! We have shown the world that there is a peaceful way to fight a dictatorship. Of course, there will be those among you who might think you were betrayed by EDSA, but you can not feel betrayed unless you yourselves have made revolutions of your minds and hearts. We will just be hypocrites if we keep crying yet our consciences will tell us that we ourselves have not done enough. The future of the Philippines is in the hands of dreamers. I am proud to know that there are some people who are earnestly trying to make a difference. A final word from someone who you will probably never ever read from again: let us LOVE OUR COUNTRY MUCH MORE than how much we do now. If it would take a sacrifice (but one that your conscience says you can endure), why not take it? Dr. Laurel once said, "nobody can love the Filipino better than the Filipino." Maybe it is better to think that "if nobody loves the Filipino, who else will?" We must know who we are, and start getting proud of who we are, of what we can do despite our limitations. Let us search within the deepest tunnels of our hearts to ask ourselves if we are doing enough to help our country, if we truly love our country (and if not why don't we?). We can get truly organized and fight the waves of evil strongly entrenched in the hierarchy of Philippine society. We must teach ourselves, our children and our children's children that the strength of a nation is not built in one day. Let us learn from the experience of the Jews -- did they enter the Promised Land during Abraham's time ? during Moses' time ? Did Israel become an overnight power in the Middle East or did get their strength from the pride each Jew has of his heritage? May God be with you in the ball game of life...