8. - Do I Have What It Takes To Be A Filipino?

“I am Filipino, born of freedom, freedom for myself,

my children, and my children's children,

forever."

Carlos P. Romulo.

Do you know who he is? Carlos P. Romulo was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier, journalist and author. The passage I cited earlier was from his work, “I am Filipino”. But what makes a Filipino? Do I have what it take to be a Filipino? Together, let's see how Carlos P. Romulo defines a Filipino.

" I am Filipino

I am responsible for my glorious past,

with an obligation to an uncertain future"

The first Filipinos were those brave enough to cross the sea to this uncertain land, the land they now call home. The land Filipinos call home, the Philippines. As a Filipino, I have an obligation. An obligation to take care of my home for the generations to come. I shall not do anything to harm nor destroy the beauty of this motherland. This land filled with green forests, lush mountains, and pristine waters. This land I call home.

“I am Filipino

In my blood runs the immortal seeds of heroes

Seeds that bloomed down the centuries,

In deeds of courage and defiance”

            I am a Filipino because heroes fought for me. My ancestors were courageous and defiant in driving away foreign oppressors. My freedom is the product of their blood and sacrifice. These heroes are men like Lapu Lapu, Diego Silang, Jose Rizal, Emilio Aguinaldo, Andres Bonifacio, and all the men and women who fought hard for our country’s freedom.

“I am Filipino

Child of the marriage of East and West”

            I am of the east, my people have struggled for liberation. Yet, I am also of the West. History has taught us that no man nor nation is an island but part of a main. This is the same with our country. We are influenced by both the East and the West. The East, where our people originated, and the West, that crossed seas to reach our country and remain for centuries.

“I am Filipino

This is my inheritance

I shall give the pledge, the joyous cries

That have resounded in every field of combat”

            I must prove myself worthy of my inheritance. My forefathers left me the gift of freedom, this wondrous country, and a place to call home. What better way to honor this than to promise to protect our home. To pledge that never shall foreign oppressors take advantage of our land. The land that is rightfully ours. This land that was founded, flourished, and called home by Filipinos.

            Yet, here I stand, second guessing if I have the right to call myself a Filipino. In Carlos P. Romulo’s “I am Filipino”, I heard the makings and dignity of a Filipino. I heard of a Filipino who truly cares for his land and its nature. Now, I urge you to take a look around you. Do you see groves of trees? Do you see lush green mountains and pristine water? I’ll tell you what I see. I see bald forests with chopped down trees. I see sculpted mountains with heaps of land chipped off to provide the foundations of expensive compounds, condos, and buildings. I see cement where I should be seeing green. The once pristine water is now either dried up or reduced to a muck of polluted liquid.

            I heard of a Filipino who was proud of the heroes that fought for his race. Yet again, I myself know so little about these people. I am ashamed to admit that I do not know most of their names and stories. I think I can say that these people were rather treated as a lesson meant to be learned in order to pass a written test in school.  We sometimes forget to honor them and dwell more on the festivities than the importance and reason why we actually celebrate their sacrifice.

            I heard of a Filipino who is the product of both the East and the West. Then why is it that we value the West more than we do the East? We admire the Western pop culture. We try to follow their trends. We value their clothes, movies, songs, and other works more than we do of our own. We strive to speak fluently in English yet fail to understand and love our own uniquely rich language.

            Lastly, I heard a Filipino who is proud of his inheritance and will do everything in his power to protect it. Filipinos swore to protect their country and honor the legacy of freedom. But here we are today in a country that is filled with corruption. I see people who would put down fellow Filipinos. Where is the freedom our forefathers fought hard to achieve if we ourselves oppress each other?

            I am now left wondering if I have the right to call myself a Filipino. I am guilty of not possessing all of the attributes of a Filipino in Carlos P. Romulo’s work. And so I leave you this, ask yourself: Do I have what it takes to be a Filipino?