To Whom Much is Given, Much is Expected

I came across this phrase one time while i was watching the telecast of the 2007 Emmy Awards. The show was giving honor to those television programs whose phenomenal success has enabled them to reach out far beyond the boob tube entertaionment. One show that was recognized for that higher purpose was the spin off of American Idol called Idol Gives Back, the top rating American show fund raising extravaganza thats featured performances of its past winners and finalists. The proceeds from the show were used to help children and young people in extreme poverty in the U.S. and in Africa. It was the Idol's way of sharing its success to those who have made the show enjoyed tremendous viewerships all through out its season runs.

Dead Heroes

I am setting aside my self nepotism to devote a piece of my time and blog space to honor the Filipino Overseas Workers who have lost their lives while trying to make a difference in the lives of their loved ones and our beloved nation in general. I am feel sorry for their ill fated journey and tragic loss and now I am raising a hundred and one reasons why they deserved to be called heroes, but not when they are dead.

"pinoy care, handog natin sa mundo.."

FROM THE VERY BEGINNING….
Leaving loved ones behind is a painful thing to do – but they did.
Abandoning their jobs back home is a silly idea – but they did.
Facing a new culture is a wall difficult to infiltrate – but they did.
Searching for a job without assurance is a costly gamble – but they did.
Heading for a future so vague and blurry – But they did.

ALL FOR THE LOVE OF FAMILY – THEY DID, SO THAT ….
New house can be built ….
Bills can be paid…..
School can be pursued…..
Occasions can be celebrated…..
Illness can be cured…..
Life can be saved…..
Dreams can be achieved…
Economy can be revived….
Progress can be fueled….

BUT SOMETIMES LIFE CAN BE SO CRUEL…..
He who works is bothered…..
He who cares is ignored….
He who sees is overlooked…..
He who sacrifices is redeemed….
He who loves is taken away…..

AND BRUTALLY UNKIND….
He who only hope for the welfare of his loved ones….
He who only wish for the best for his kids…..
He who only think about the safety of his parents….
He who doesn’t think only about himself…..
Is murdered, terminated, evicted and gone…..
Without warning, without sign, without goodbye...

----)0(----

Same month last year, a road mishap in Dubai has claimed the lives of three Filipinas working for a coffee shop. The freak accident, whose cause was attributed mainly to reckless driving, has ranked among the most tragic in Dubai. Recently, ten Filipinos were among the civilians killed in a helicopter crash in a NATO base in Afghanistan. Their unwanted death came at a time when there's an imposed labor ban on that country. As such, they would not be entitled to full benefits from the government for being undocumented workers. Their hard works as an OFW have long benefited the country, but now it has ended up in a tragic loss, their suffering was theirs and theirs alone.

But why? Simply because they sneaked out of the country illegally to work on these places makes them less of an "OFW"? Aren't we all out here sacrificing basically for the same reason? When we send money back home, it is received without even care if it is coming from someone documented or not. We all help in our own capacities. The government benefits from the risk that these people have taken into themselves so that a better future awaits their family. The same risk that's helping the economy up is now the same risk that putting their names and bereaved down. That oversight is just not fair.

When someone left home to work abroad, that’s already a huge sacrifice, not being able to see your loved ones for some time. When you accept a job which is quite different from what you professionally can do, your sacrificing your pride and honor. When you try to fight the homesickness and boredom every time you lay yourself in bed, that’s a sacrifice. When you get our salary, you try to limit your personal spending so that you can send more to your loved ones back home., that’s sacrifice. All for the sake of our families and our nations.

When accidents that claim lives of OFW happen, the sacrifices end, together with the prospects of a brighter future for their family. There would be some media coverage and some financial assistance from the government. After that, the sacrifices of the people who once left their homeland to fulfill an unselfish dreams in the most noble way they can will be forgotten. The modern heroism of the people who left their country alive and with high hopes will be forsaken just as their lifeless body is buried six feet below the ground, silently and forever.

That’s the tale of our present day heroes. Heroes only when they are dead. Never accorded the respect, honor and benefits they deserve when they living and sending billions in annual remittance. Currently, there are over 12 million Overseas Filipino Workers around the globe mostly setting aside their lives to fulfill a greater good for their respective families and country.

Work in Progress

Anything that is subject for completion, as in pending road works, on-going house renovation, unfinished school project, in accounting, raw materials undergoing some manufacturing process. But perhaps the biggest example of work in progress is - life itself. Life that begins with conception, infancy, childhood, adolescence and so on and so forth and is weave with a slew of emotional tendencies and character originating with innocence. From there, an endless journey unfolds. So one can never be too sure or too complacent. For every minutes hold an opportunity to make or break. There are no certainties in life, which make it ever so changing, adapting and vulnerable. One can never be too careful or too careless, for any moment, calamity can overwhelm our happiness or overturn our sorrows.

Life without the ups and downs is boring. Only dead people beats their hearts flat. Before , I used to blame a lot of things for what's happening to me. I used to believe that it is not fair that some people must suffer while others flourish in abundance. I used to envy people who seems to enjoy their job despite their minimal salary. I used to question God why I have to go all these things when I haven't done anything wrong to anyone. Now I understand. Life without the ups and downs is boring. When you are always up there, you don't seem to see and appreciate the people who would catch you when you fall.

There is no permanent in our lives, not even happiness, love and security. But the good thing is, once you've lost or gave up something either by choice or by chance, you always have the opportunity to get it back and usually it comes with a free pack of lessons learned. They say for the second time, it's sweeter, it's lovelier and it's more appreciated. More than outgrowing our physicality, the work in progress that is life deals more with character formation, taking every bit of good seeds from the countless journeys that we may be in, be it on the green slopes, the stormy seas, the high mountains or the cold desert.

When I was still working with San Miguel, I thought that I would be doing that same job for the rest of my life. I thought that I would going to be a Megamall buddy until my legal retirement days. It never happened though.. Six years after spending time and drinking beer with Miguel, I went to Dubai to find a better fortune. Before that year ended however, I went back home with my pocket inside out. I was too childish then. The following year, I went back to Dubai for the second time and a year after, I was about to file for my life's biggest personal and emotional bankruptcy. Where is me now? I am still in Dubai and getting my myself back to business. I have learned how to dance with life. I have heartfully embraced the fact that I am human that I have to experience pain and pleasure, defiance and defeat and strength and arrogance at one point.

Right now, financially I have amounted myself to an unbelievable nothing! But in terms of character, I'd say that I am a whole lot better than yesterday. Life evolves constantly, there's no assurance that what you are holding right now will still be there the next morning. So for all who are down there, that's always a reason to look forward to. Life as a work in progress has no definite or fixed finished product, much less a period of when or where to become it. People going through the same difficulty may view their situation at different perspective. One may see it as a way to polish his weaknesses while another can see view it as a curse to give up his life. What we can evolved into depends greatly on how we take and accept the ways things happen and it always pay to be optimistic.

Running Past Your Past

Time is one thing surely to never cease to run, inconsiderate of our emotions, ambitions, affections, autonomy and even our authority. Time is irreversible and it doesn't go back to were it was before. It always moves forward and whosoever runs against it or behind it will never be able to find success. For success only comes to those who knows how to get past their past no matter how painful it is, those who live the present though nothing is at hand and those who are brave enough to face the future no matter how bleak it may seem. Success lies in the hands of those who believe that time has reserved a place for all of us. We just have to wait and believe in it.

There are moments in life which are really difficult to recover from. Sometime we try to hold on to something that is no longer there and we do not want to let it go for fear of ending up alone and miserable. The pain of losing someone you love, or even losing your job, your house or an opportunity for something to make it big could be very cursing that it could take away your will to go on. But the truth is, dwelling on your heartaches and misery could be worst and more painful. It turn us blind to the countless beauty that exist beyond our sorrows and guilt. We only see the curse and the cruelty of what happened, though in the bright side, the lessons to be learned are just waiting to be embraced.

Any change, any loss, any failings, anything in the past that made us felt down and bad do not necessarily make us victims. Yes, they can shake you, surprise you, disappoint you but they cannot prevent you from acting, from taking the situation you are presented with and moving on. No matter where you are in life, no matter what your situation is, you can always do something, you always have a choice - the choice to move on and run with time. That choice represents power - the power to overcome fear and overturn your failures to success.

The last few months that I have been living, I would say, have been upsetting if not tragic. In as much as I want to freeze time to make the bleeding stop, I just couldn't. Time hears no one, not even the smallest plea of the saddest man. I couldn't stop the time from running, but I could always choose to stop my life and no one will ever care. If I do so, I would be forever left behind in bitter memories and so are my dreams and selfless longings. And I just don't want to perish without trying and fighting till the end, so I choose to move on and run with time no matter how wounded and frail I have become. I know that as long as I got the air to breathe, I would always have the time to recover and turn where I am today to where I want to be tomorrow.