Ayaw ko sa baboy!

As we celebrate National Heroes Day, many of my fellow Filipinos keep the flame of heroism as they marched in major parks like Luneta to protest against the "Pork Barrel," or the Congress's PDAF. Although, we see the "pork barrel" as the symbol of corruption in the government, let us not forget the government officials who committed the sin. While we pray that they will change their ways, we also want them to take responsibility for their actions. Let us not forget the bigger picture behind the pork.

Pork barrel is not Napoles. "No to Pork barrel" is a fight against officials being corrupt. It is a fight against neglect to the needs of the common Filipinos. It is a stand against indifference to the ills of our society. It is an action against the evil ways that creeps into our daily lives.  

What better way to be a Filipino Hero today but to take a stand and declare AYAW KO SA BABOY!

What Ninoy's death mean...

As we celebrate Ninoy Aquino’s 30^th death anniversary, his words after his hunger strike echo in my head. He wrote to his wife, "there comes a time to a man's life when he had to prefer a meaningful death to a meaningless life." 

 I have always stopped to reflect if my life is significant. Will the life I lived matter? But this new point of view from Ninoy made me reflect. There is always a difference between life and death. Humans, especially myself, have been so preoccupied with the kind of life we have been living. We always ask ourselves if the lives we live contributed anything in this world. Did we use our lives to make the world better? But seldom do we ever think how our death will become significant? We seldom think that our death will matter? We seldom think if our death will make the world a better place to live. I think of Rizal and Ninoy now. But when I was a kid, I always wondered why these heroes were not afraid to die. But now I am beginning to understand why.  Although they did live a significant life, what made them matter most was how they died. They were remembered the most because of the impact their death had to the society. We knew that Rizal’s death triggered the unity of the Filipinos to consolidate their efforts in fighting against the colonizers. Rizal’s death triggered the Philippine revolution. Ninoy’s death aroused the Filipino’s emotion to stand united against the dictatorship. Ninoy’s death triggered the EDSA revolution.

Death has never been viewed as a venue for helping improve our world. We are always preoccupied with how we live our life as the venue to make this world a better place. But heroes are made because they saw their life as less important than the good of the many. This is selfless sacrifice, a sacrifice even to the point of death. A death they were willing to pay. Good men die, that others may live. More than 2000 years ago, a man understood this. He was more than a Ninoy, a Rizal or any hero. He understood that his death will not only make the world a better place but will save humanity.  He worked and lived his life for them. He then gave his life, even to the point of death, that the world may live – a long lasting life. Want to know more about this man?