The ActiveTalker

“Instead of supporting the men most useful to the people, he made them useless out of jealousy… he judged the worth of men not by their ability, character and patriotism, but rather by their degree of friendship and kinship with him.”
Apolinario Mabini talking about Emilio Aguinaldo in his short work, “La revolucion Filipina”

That was from Mr. Ambeth R. Ocampo’s article at the Philippine Daily Inquirer last July 2, 2010. It was entitled “Mabini’s Advice.”

It seemed like Mabini is giving advice to our newly installed president. But it had a different impact on me.

He stated in his article that many of our heroes wrote volumes of works, letters, and memoirs for a nation who does not read. Their work remain unread, unless you’re some “geek” or bookworm who does nothing but read. But hey, these are writings that can help us define our personality, heighten our patriotism and increase our awareness of who we are.

Sometimes, during my Philippine history class, I ask my students what they know about history, with regards to our topic that day. I usually get disappointed with their answers. Is history a very uninteresting topic? Is reading the Twilight saga more appealing than reading Jose Rizal’s writings? Are sonnets by William Shakespeare better to listen to than “Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Lupa” by Andres Bonifacio?

Just a curious question, are most of the Filipinos today, particularly the youth, the so-called hope of the nation, still nationalistic? Is there still a spark of patriotism, the one that was burning in the hearts of our heroes who sacrificed their lives to fight for our freedom, present in us?

I leave you this as a point to ponder. And to further make you aware, please read the poem entitled “Like the Molave.”