Lupang Hinirang

May mga araw na mababaw ang luha ko. This is one of those days. When we sang Lupang Hinirang at the start of the Department of Tourism-sponsored run, tears welled up my eyes. Suddenly the words of our national anthem took whole new meaning.


With the recent turn of events, my sense of national pride was at a low, if not an all-time low. Who doesn't? But a visit to Quirino, seeing and rediscovering the beauty that is old Manila, or hearing of HK teens hugging Filipinos. The spirit of volunteerism and the positivity I hear in others, somehow uplifted my spirits.

We are a race that prides itself of being resilient amidst adversities. And yet after getting beaten black and blue, you get numb and that resilient spirit you are so proud can easily evolve into indifference.

That incident was a major blow in this already castigated nation. Admittedly, we did a lot of things wrong on August 23, during and even in the aftermath of the tragedy. We failed.

However, I agree with one article, we shouldn't let this one incident define us as a nation. But as we learned in forecasting, most recent history has the greatest weight in projecting the outcome of an event. And that recent event defined us as a people, our system and the climate which we live in.

And we cannot blame anyone who has lost faith in our fellowmen and the system we have put in place. Maybe that was the reason the tears came, because for a moment, I have lost faith.

And yet hearing the words of the national anthem, I was reminded that despite its many imperfections, we live in a country that has been lambasted and yet has the audacity to stand proud and smile. Is it indifference? Callousness? Or is it the capacity to roll with the punches and get up after a knockdown?

No words or new negotation team can bring back the lives lost. What we can do is move on and ensure that we know what to do when (God forbid) this happens again.

Lupang Hinirang, now might not be your proudest moment. But I still believe in the capacity of your people to adjust and move on. After all, a pearl is a product of dirt in the ocean. If only we can the harness the power of an oyster.....