THE VIEW FROM RIZAL
Last Monday, the nation marked this year’s celebration of National Heroes Day.
While staying on the watch for possible effects of rains triggered by Typhoon Goring, our thoughts returned to a conversation we overheard some five years ago at a gathering of educators from the Southern Tagalog region. In that event, we heard one teacher ask her colleague this question: What kind of people become heroes?
Her colleague’s answer was remarkable: “Well, some heroes were extraordinary people who led extraordinary lives.”
Then, she added: “There were many more who were ordinary people who made extraordinary deeds,” she added.
That answer left an indelible mark in our memory.
True. Some of our celebrated heroes easily fit into the first category: extraordinary people who lead extraordinary lives. Among them was Dr. Jose Rizal. Few, perhaps, can match the extraordinariness of his person and that of his life.
After all, he was the epitome of the renaissance man: writer, doctor, poet, sculptor, linguist, agriculturist, builder, teacher, athlete, town planner, and developer, plus many more. He inspired a revolution, challenged the status quo, became a symbol of excellence and freedom, and helped shape the identity of our people and our Nation.
Equally inspiring are those in category two: those who led ordinary lives, but who rose to the occasion when the motherland beckoned.
One outstanding example is Gat Andres Bonifacio.
Here’s what we know about him. He was an ordinary craftsman-turned-entrepreneur who sold his wares in the streets of Tondo. When the aspiration for independence became the passion of young Filipinos of his generation, he left his trade and became a co-founder of the La Liga Filipina. He eventually fathered the armed revolution against the colonizer and led the most famous “Cry” for freedom ever heard in our country.
Some of the generals who led the revolutionary forces against colonizers were also “ordinary” men who rose to the occasion. We remember that General Miguel Malvar of Batangas was a farmer before he answered the call to arms. General Pantaleon Garcia was a teacher, while Simeon Ola – acknowledged by some historians as the “last general to surrender to American forces – was a philosophy student aspiring to become a priest.
The much-feared and revered “Heneral” Antonio Luna of the “Artikulo Uno” fame was a pharmacist. Another feared and revered revolutionary general was Macario Sacay of Quezon province who was a tailor and part-time barber before he took up arms against colonial rulers. General Jose Ignacio Paua was a Binondo-based blacksmith while General Santiago Alvarez was a student. General Vicente Lukban was a clerk while General Edilberto Evangelista was a civil engineer.
Filipino women of the revolutionary era who were previously leading ordinary lives did not allow themselves to be outdone by their male counterparts. In that list is Melchora Aquino or Tandang Sora, she was a singer and a merchant before she became the Florence Nightingale of the Katipunan.
Famous heroine Gabriela Silang was probably involved in her father’s trade when she married Diego and continued his fight after his demise.
Marcela Marcelo, dubbed as the revolution’s “Selang bagsik” was probably a plain housewife involved in the management of her family’s farm before she decided to transform herself into the nightmare of Spanish soldiers. Nieves Fernandez, the famous woman-guerilla during World War II, was a schoolteacher before she became a much-feared bolo-wielding leader of underground freedom fighters.
The list goes on and on.
What the people in the list prove is that many ordinary Filipinos leading ordinary lives are more than capable of doing extraordinary deeds when the occasion calls for it.
That spirit lives on today.
It is a tradition that goes on full display, especially during times of adversities, man-made or natural. That spirit is clearly evident among our teachers, overseas workers, breadwinners, rural health workers, agriculture extension workers, Filipino athletes and the unsung heroes helping grassroots communities raise the quality of their lives.
This week, we offer a prayer for the extraordinary Filipinos who led extraordinary lives and have become our inspiration. We honor, too, the many ordinary Filipinos who, to this day, would rise to the occasion and perform extraordinary deeds. We honor them for keeping alive our tradition of heroism and greatness.