And why our carefree disposition could also be our worst trait
Filipinos are generally a happy people. We can smile whatever the situation. Our happy-go-lucky nature and positive mindset allow us to bounce back from the direst of circumstances, from disasters, from wars, and surely from this pandemic. But has it ever crossed your mind that this asset could be a liability?
One of humanity’s goals is contentment. And yet, it is equally true that genuine happiness is derived from a life well-lived. So, are we really happy? Complacency can be mistaken for contentment. This, perhaps, is our waterloo. Our standard for what should make us happy is set too low.
Can you honestly say that life in the Philippines is good? Is the living condition of the common Filipino citizen ideal or at least enough?
Pinoys are easy to please, to a fault. This could be associated with our misconstrued notion of self-worth. We tend to underestimate ourselves. It takes another country or a foreigner to tell us how good we are before we acknowledge it. Our talents need to attain international acclaim before we recognize them. Take, for instance, Lea Salonga on Broadway, or Michael Cinco, Furne One, even Cary Santiago in Dubai, or even athletes like Hidilyn Diaz who had to win gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before we gave her our wholehearted support.
Let’s not even look far and go to the grassroots level. Farmers cannot afford their own crops, which are given little to no value. Most of them do not even own lands. The hands that feed us are the poorest and the hungriest of all.
Happiness is getting what we deserve.
Employees working faithfully and diligently in a company should be regularized. The regulars, on the other hand, who do their job well, should be incentivized. Instead, local employers find ways to gaslight workers with the narrative “you’re lucky to even have a job.”
Another instance is politics. The Filipino masses would vote for Mr. Congeniality who promises good governance, build reliable facilities and roads, and end corruption and drugs. What people miss is that these are the basic duties of the government.
They say ignorance is bliss. The less one knows the less one worries or, to give it a more positive spin, the happier one is. But this is another factor in our false happiness. Filipinos are out of touch when it comes to sensitive and important matters. This could either be attributed to the poor reading comprehension and behavior of Filipinos, or to the local media that have succumbed to the trend of short-form and mediocre stories. Substandard articles and bad writing pervade local media online. It is both the responsibility of the consumers and the local media to remedy this.
Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of things to be thankful for, but we should also be aware that we are getting the short end of the stick. If we can do something about it, we should.
Happiness is being able to eat three times a day. It is being able to provide for you and your family’s needs and wants. It is job stability. It is feeling safe and secure inside and outside your home. But those are basics. Happiness is also excellence and an environment where excellence is recognized, appreciated, supported, and then rewarded. Happiness is the opportunity to find meaning in this life and to make a difference. Happiness is getting what we deserve.