I’ve never had issues facing a blank page.
Some writers admit they dread having to start a page. Fearing the blank page can be translated to making oneself vulnerable as you present yourself to the world because once you hit that first key, you make yourself subject to both praise and attack or, worse, indifference. In print, you have no delete or privacy button as a safety net.
Sometimes I find myself taking a pause before hitting the first key not because I “fear” the page, but because I take the time to pick from all the ideas floating in my head.
When I first mustered the courage to write for a publication, the catalyst for me was American lawyer Gerry Spence’s book How to Argue and Win Every Time. In his introduction, he addressed my fear and gave me the courage to become a writer. He said that we all start in a position of power when we present our ideas and beliefs.
AN INSPIRATION The book that gave the author the courage to start on her print writing journey
I see this now in millions of users on various social media platforms, whether TikTok, FB, or IG, just ordinary people putting themselves out there. You can fool yourself: When posting a reel, you’re only facing the monitor, which can be reassuring, but when people start commenting, especially negatively, the rude awakening begins. I am now reminded of how only a few are chosen to become bonafide influencers for it takes a different breed to become one. Indeed, fame and financial gain are great motivators.
Last night, I spent some time at a cocktail party with a young lady who has now taken over her father’s medical supplies business. Only in her 20s, she said that what drove her was to have her dad enjoy life in his farm in Cagayan de Oro. At the same gathering, the dishes on offer were concocted by a budding food entrepreneur who wants to set up his own business, just like so many other young Filipinos braving the world not just with careful steps but with enthusiastic leaps.
Even my 16-year-old son Ian Orestes braved applying for an on-the-job training during his summer break in one of the legislative houses. He spoke of being in awe walking down the corridors of power, reading the name plates on the door of each lawmaker’s office, names he used to just hear and read about, and also the wonder he had for the legislative bills he would read, then write up briefs on. The other day he shared that the amount of time and research needed to make sure he got everything right would leave him “mentally exhausted.” “Mom, it’s harder than IB (International Baccalaureate)!” he said, yet each morning he would wake up enthusiastic, raring to go to work. How wonderful to be young again! To start with a clean slate of no disappointments and heartbreaks. Going back to my earlier statement of “fearing of the blank page,” perhaps as adults we accumulate a number of these setbacks and so develop fear.
On the topic of disappointment, inaction on the destruction of the Relief Map of the Philippines in April 2023 by the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) still lies heavy in my heart. The demolition of this iconic heritage artwork was wrong and illegal.
As a heritage advocate, I find the action by a cultural government agency has cast a dark cloud over the heritage community and its fight against the demolition of heritage structures. We are hard put to stand on high ground when dealing with developers. And how can we? When the fact remains that the NMP still has not been made accountable for demolishing an Important Cultural Property?
SYMBOL OF FREEDOM The Sentinel of Freedom is a monument to Lapulapu (Photo Jovan Soriano | National Museum of the Philippines Facebook page)
Recently, former Senator Richard “Dick” Gordon drew attention to the NMP’s plan to remove the 40-foot Sentinel of Freedom, popularly known as the Lapulapu statue at the Teodoro F. Valencia Circle, formerly Agrifina Circle. On a positive note, the NMP must have learned something from the Relief Map of the Philippines brouhaha since this time it posted photos and a brief explanation as to the reason behind the removal of the Lapulapu statue, a gift given by the Koreans in 2004 to the Philippines in appreciation of our involvement in the Korean War (1950-1953).
Gordon, however, doubts the return of the statue and remains dissatisfied with the museum’s rationale behind its removal. Since the statue is younger than 50 years old, the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) has no jurisdiction on its rehabilitation or destruction.
IN NEED OF REPAIRS The base of the Sentinel of Freedom (Photo Paul Pitero | National Museum of the Philippines)
The nature of concern for its removal is a diplomatic one.
Looking at the NMP’s plans, however, it appears the Lapulapu statue will remain but the glaring omission of the Relief Map in the NMP’s plans may cause some to ask, “From the beginning was there really no intention to keep it?” The plan predates the demolition. So, it is not surprising to hear some questioning the reason given by the NMP director Jeremy Barnes behind its demolition, who described it to be in such a “dismal state” that it had to be demolished.
Republic Act 11333, which was signed into law in April 2019, created the National Museum Complex on the eastern section of Rizal Park, where the Relief Map of the Philippines once sprawled. The National Museum was renamed the NMP and given the mandate to create a master plan for the complex and to build, but it was not given the authority to modify or destroy cultural property (The Relief Map included) within the complex.
PLANS FOR THE FUTURE A proposed plan by the NMP hopes to to resurrect American Architect Daniel Burnham's 1905 City Plan of Manila
The NCCA’s Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA10066 Sec 11 states modification and destruction of cultural property can only be done when “presumption of significance” is lifted. The NCCA is the only cultural agency mandated by RA10066 to lift this “presumption of significance” after due process. No clearance was given by the NCCA to the National Museum but the NMP continued its demolition.
The NMP’s plan is to resurrect the American Architect Daniel Burnham’s 1905 City Plan of Manila, which was commissioned by Governor General Howard Taft of the American colonial government in the Philippines.
The Relief Map of the Philippines was the representation of the ideals of the Third Republic of the Philippines (1946-1973).
It was envisioned by Filipinos, conceptualized by Filipinos, and created by Filipino craftsmen. It was the embodiment of an “independent nation in pursuit of security, liberty, prosperity, and enlightenment” during a period in our country’s history when our leaders fought long and hard for political, economic, and cultural emancipation from pervasive colonial influences.
So, demolishing the Relief Map and building what conservation architect Gerard Lico described as “a colonial urban fantasy that never was” is tone-deaf. Barring an amendment of RA 11333 on the sections pertaining to the resurrection of the Burnham Plan, the planned structure on the site will be built. At the beginning of any new endeavor in our pre-colonial past, a sacrifice is made to appease the spirits and invite good “joss.” I wonder, before construction, “Will a resignation or reassignment suffice?