THE BIRTH OF A FILIPINO AND A COUNTRY
Lifted from Rizaliana Corner: A Rizalist Reflection
THE BIRTH OF A FILIPINO AND A COUNTRY
By Rado Gatchalian
Jose P. Rizal, born on June 19, 1861, in Calamba, Laguna, is one great Filipino who exemplifies the ideal man, with a sense of purpose and meaning. With great multitudes of his achievements in life, he serves as a perfect model for a life well-lived, not just for Filipinos, but for all nationalities. The Filipino race must be so proud for producing a man like Rizal in a time when our country was oppressed and abused by a coloniser Spain.
It must have been difficult for him to speak and write against Spain during his lifetime, but when we read his works, he made it appear like it was so easy. When we read the pages of Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, he bravely exposed the abuses of the friars and the sad stories of Sisa, Crispin, and Basilio. Not everyone could do what he did. Not everyone would have the inner courage like Rizal. Not everyone could have the same discipline he had. Not everyone could have a wider scope of vision like him.
That’s why he was condemned to death. Not everyone could face death like an offering to the gods. But he offered his life, and death, for our country. Graciously and freely.
In 1861, in Calamba, a Filipino was born. In 1896, in Bagumbayan, a country was born.
His life reminds us how we should live as a Filipino. His death reminds us how our country was born out of love and sacrifices.
When I gaze at his statues, I look at his eyes and ask: “Is he happy now? Is he happy for what happened to our country? Does he still believe that the Youth is the hope of our Motherland? Does he think he died in vain?”
I can only stare and ask these perennial questions.
But as I look at my country and my fellowmen, I see Rizal in every Filipino who was abused and put to death. I see him in every poor people because of corruption from our leaders. I see his eyes in every youth wanting change for our country. I see him in every Filipino who moves to other country looking for a better future and opportunity. I see him in all the anguishes and fears of our people. Ultimately, I wish to see him in every Filipino who wants to dedicate a life for our country.
Rizal have lived a life worth remembering because he lived not for just himself but for others and for our country. And that made him different from the rest of all of us because he lived and died for this great idea called “Love.”
And because of this Love, a Filipino was born, a country was born.
#JoseRizal
#TheFILOsopher
#Filipino
#Philippines
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Rado Gatchalian is a poet, writer, modern-day commentator, content creator in social media, global mover in terms of nation-building projects and a passionate scholar of the life and works of Dr. Jose Rizal.
He marries his academic background in Philosophy and Psychology with his passion projects in Poetry, the arts and music. The FILOsopher to his peers and friends in Sydney, Australia, you can find some of his works in his page, The FILOsopher, “Filo” being the moniker for Filipinos in Australia.
