Embrace THE Dawn

GLIMPSES
Jose Ma. Montelibano

The year of change unfolds. It begins with what the old year left it, a year of shock and uncertainty, of rice and old crises, of a meltdown of the global economy. Many say 2009 will be worse. I say it will be exciting.

Excitement connotes with an eager anticipation. It has no guarantee of success and happiness, but waves them like bait to the adventurous, the desperate, or those who fight a growing void in their spirit. 2009 will be an exciting year for different reasons to different people, but definitely exciting.

The politicians in high places, the bureaucrats in positions attracting, or demanding, perks and kickbacks, join the prayer for extended terms by whatever means. Their rivals who want their turn at the power and the goodies will oppose them at every turn. The dreamers who seek good governance are caught between a rock and a hard place. They know only an authoritarian regime can be capable of cleansing the grime of traditional politics but are afraid of it. The poor and disadvantaged survive without hope, grappling with hunger and constant fear. Yet, they have no Lenin, no Mao, no Fidel, no Ho Chi Min, only a Joma who wants to orchestrate a revolution in the safety of a foreign country.

It would seem that no real change is forthcoming. Physical and economic power is firmly in the hands of those who ought not to have it. And those who threaten them with the best odds to take over are infected with the same cancer of greed and lust for control, even if at a lower stage. The Catholic Church, the only established force which can mitigate wrongdoing seems to have many of its bishops unwilling to confront the instruments of evil.

Why, then, would I believe that 2009 will be an exciting year? Without any tangible manifestation of real change, there can be excitement, only resignation. What is it that I see with enough power to turn a pitiful historical tide and change the course of history for Filipinos?

I wish I can say it is God’s hand. I cannot because God’s hand has been present in all the time that moral degeneration has corrupted the soul of governance in all institutions of importance to Filipino society. Obviously, God allows evil to dominate even a God-fearing society for a greater purpose, or to honor His gift of free will to man.

It is, then, the Filipino who must rise above ignorance, cowardice or the fantasy of reform by sheer prayer. It is the Filipino who suffers, who is abused and robbed by their leaders, who is deceived by the hypocrisy of pastoral shepherds. It is the Filipino who can and must demand freedom and sacrifice to build the promised land. The Filipino must cross the land of submission to action, or from talk to walk.

I have seen that Filipino. I have left the emerging resolve to discard a submissive pattern and take on responsibility. I have experienced the nobility of the bayanihan spirit where the other is given first consideration ahead of personal interest. I have witnessed the young reject the corruption of power and wealth, rediscover our idealism and begin their march to a better world. I have seen a black man arise from a past where slavery oppressed his people and now find favor even among old masters and stand elected as the leader of the free world.

I have seen the birth of Gawad Kalinga from the seeds of a vision of sacrifice and nobility, from the spirit of a Filipino who accepts being his brother’s keeper, from best among the rich and powerful who are opening their hearts, homes and resources to the poor, from the determination of Filipinos abroad who are moving to help the motherland. I see the schools and their students immerse in good works and not afraid of doing more. I see enough hope and courage to counter the darkness of poverty and corruption.

Everywhere, groups of concerned Filipinos organize for good governance, including the Kaya Natin movement which offers symbols of integrity and honesty among mayors and governors. There is only one spirit that has defined hundreds, if not thousands, of registered NGOs – and that is change. When the spirit of a people has been awakened to glimpse and strive for what can be more than stay resigned to what is, can that genie ever be returned and trapped in the bottle again?

In the United States, Filipino-Americans are fidgety. Many realize with deep embarrassment how they have chosen to fight among one another rather than unite to be an American voice, an economic force, and the beacon of hope for those they left behind in the motherland. 2009 will find sincere efforts to merge in vision and mission if they cannot do so organizationally. They are reaching out to Obama and Hillary through so many Filipinos with connections to both, and their concerns will not be contained to the Fil-Vets issue but will reach out to the home land as well.

Beyond Philippine shores and beyond North America, millions of Filipinos work to save their families, sacrifice to build a platform for the future of their loved ones, and now realizing that a political perspective is necessary to cause the kind of change they want. The dollars are good, but not without their families by their sides. Money cannot continue to be the price for separation and anguish. The OFWs now know that, and they, too, will push for change.

Tradition is tradition. Its power cannot be underestimated. Precisely because tradition resists change, and precisely because tradition is powerful, Filipinos have been subjected to purgatory on earth with seemingly little rebellion. That is the power of tradition, that even what is wrong can look better than what is new.

But tradition has never been able to stop evolution and the emergence of a new spirit, a new life. It is only a matter of reaching a point in time, a point in suffering, a point in hope, before tradition gives way to change. I know we have reached the crucial point. How can I not be excited by 2009? How can I not embrace the dawn?
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“In bayanihan, we will be our brother’s keeper and forever shut the door to hunger among ourselves.”