It’s seventeen minutes past twelve in the morning, this promising Monday, the twenty fourth of August. I just finished watching the documentary about Ninoy. Even after a tiring day, I managed to summon my tired body to watch that late night special, simply because I was curios. Curios, about the things our generation had missed, but should have heard. Though I was not able to start the documentary having fallen asleep, I was awakened by the gentle shakes of my mom, asking if I still want to watch that documentary. My body tells me I should rest, though in my mind the mere curiosity that hatched seems to give me new found strength. I never regretted following that instinct.
Having just read books and recounts of people about this great man, I was hearing Ninoy talk for the first time. His real voice, his real speech, his real message, as if he was saying it straight to my face. He recounts his days during imprisonment, during his temporary exile abroad. It dawned on me, while watching, that this man, with his intelligence and bravery was able to move mountains, through words, and through the might of his pen. He was presenting the challenge to all of us, to the Filipinos, to me – back then, and till now. His powerful and most influential words were, “we must all become leaders, and if we all become leaders, then we can all lead to our real freedom.” Such words, among all of his great words! It was as if I was hit by a bullet. My eyes, glued to the tv, my ears, desperate for his every word; oblivious to the fact that I, a mere spectator of this eye-opening program, has been deeply moved, moved in a certain part inside me that urged me to write this, an outcry, a plea, not for help, but for awareness, not only to those who have seen Ninoy and Cory’s golden era, but also to the youth, to those who were after their time.
Be aware. Be curious. Let us not allow ourselves to just look at then at every 500-peso bill we have and ‘pay’ for every vanity we have. Do not make them mere memories. Just like any other remarkable persons in our history, Ninoy and Cory deserved to make us see, feel and live on the essence of the ‘fight’ they started, the fight for our freedom, the fight for our democracy.
Yeah, you might laugh and tell me, hey, you’re just joining the bandwagon. I might be. But I am doing it not only for the purpose of being ‘in’. I wanted to know something. I wanted to know what’s next, now that Ninoy dead, Cory dead, what would happen to the legacy they have left us? Will it be buried deep within the ground with Ninoy and Cory? Or will it be passed to us, clueless teenagers of what was like during Martial Law, who needed to be informed, who needed to see that we can and should do something about what these awesome couple left us. What’s next for the Filipinos? That’s the next challenge.
“The Filipinos is worth dying for.”
– Benigno Aquino, Jr.
“Nagpapasalamat ako, dahil naging Pilipino ako.”
- Corazon Aquino
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