Winds of change
A few days ago, I sent a letter to all my friends—a plea, actually—to put their energy behind social change, no matter what it takes. This isn’t new to me. The last few years of my life have been dedicated to this advocacy through PAGASA (Peoples Assembly for Genuine Alternatives to Social Apathy). But I feel that much more has to be done and fast, because the forces of evil are swift and sure.
During the long weekend, the father of my son’s classmate was ambushed and killed. So early in their lives, my children had to hear that someone in their beloved and safe community was killed. Killed. Too early in their lives, three children lost their father to violence — the kind that has increased and continues to escalate in our country. If we do not speak and act out now, things will get worse and the same kind of brutality will land on our doorsteps more frequently.
I don’t know what the story is behind that murder, but I know that there is a brand of lawlessness that has become par for the course in our land. And why not? Extra-judicial killings are served for breakfast, the ZTE broadband deal and other tales of brazen corruption for mid-morning merienda, the Glorietta bombing, er, accident for lunch, Malacañang pay-offs for too-early afternoon merienda, painfully lost bishops for dinner and deal-fraught unconditional pardons for the midnight snack—and that’s just one day in the life. If such things are so nonchalantly plopped on the landscape, of course we’ll get our share. Our children will inhale it. Why should anyone be afraid when the powers that be continue to regale us with their immoral acrobatics? Why should criminals worry about consequences when the big guys continue to defy the law with impunity?
But the winds of change have blown into town. I am buoyed by the rumbling beneath and around me. Don’t you feel it? In my mailbox there is proof of inevitable change making its way to the surface: last Friday, the mailing of postcards to Malacañang, an initiative of the Black & White Movement I read about in Manuel L. Quezon III’s column, effectively and humorously giving notice of eviction to its current tenant, this afternoon the silent sunset watch by RockEd and Dakila, at the newly cleaned-up Baywalk. The text invite reads: “IMBITADO KA. 11-11-07. kung WALA KA NANG MASABI sa mga nangyayari sa bayan, sumama ka’t manood ng sunset sa baywalk area kasama ang rock ed at dakila. upo tayo, tabi-tabi. tambay lang sa roxas blvd. 430-6pm. tahimik, walang megaphone, walang placard. walang statement. wala. blue t-shirt. magparamdam lang tayo.” For those who don’t want to rally, this is it. As Gang Badoy of RockEd says, “It’s a show-of-hands performance art. It’s for friends and friends of friends to watch the sunset together in blue, because a blue flame is hot but not wild yet.” Consider yourself invited.
For certain groups and individuals, apathy cannot survive and we will keep toiling for change and renewal. For us, unity comes only after the authentic restitution of democracy. Any call for unity that merely covers up evil will inevitably rot from the sewage beneath it. We cannot move on without acknowledging what we did to create this situation and then weed (yank, might be what’s needed at this point) out the very elements that propagate it. Unity before owning-up, cleaning-up and starting anew is a surefire way of finding ourselves in that gigantic square called 1. What would hold that “unity” together? Truth is the first step in any healing. I haven’t seen that yet. All we have now is front row seats to the crazy, inhuman manipulation and distortion of order, truth and morality. If we don’t do anything, we will soon find ourselves thrown into the ring, helpless and unarmed. It’s that simple.
I am thankful I have children. I look at them and know I have to be part of the change because I cannot let them inherit this mess. At the very least, they will see that I fought evil in our country and spent a good deal of my life trying to make a difference not just at home but outside it. They will learn that evil must not be allowed to thrive. I recognize that any change must begin with the self but I don’t delude myself into thinking that what I do at home and in my personal life is enough. I am conscious that everything I put out there must be consistent, true and good, despite my mistakes. Even when I stumble, I am determined to steer back towards the course of truth. Always. I know it’s not enough to say or feel it. It must be lived and made manifest through deed.
You cannot claim to espouse certain values and then put on your businessman or politician hat and do something else because, well, that’s business or politics. Anyway, the real you is at home teaching your children to pray and tell the truth. That does not cut it. That is the way fragmentation is born and, through its cracks, evil leaves its mark. The only way this country will change and heal is if everyone walked his talk daily and consistently. We have to begin to ask ourselves some serious questions: what exactly are we putting out there in the realm of our personal lives, our work, and every other dimension of our existence and how aligned is that with what we truly believe as human beings? Are we putting our resources and energies behind initiatives that will raise this country and its people towards its true potential or are we supporting projects that rob our people of dignity, inspiration, education and free will, pushing us further into the abyss? Where is the dissonance and how must it be addressed? What are we willing to let go of—toxic habits, fixed and narrow mindsets, negative influences—so that true and lasting change can enter our lives and ripple out into the country? It’s hard and painful work and that’s what it takes. There can be no shortcuts.
The old People Power no longer works. That much we know. There is a new and vital power waiting to be born. No one knows exactly how it will manifest but I feel its presence just beneath the surface and it cannot break through alone. We have to create the vessel for it through our intentions and strength of will. Until then, we do what we can where we can at home and outside it, every day in every way.
In the PAGASA e-group, there is a positive restlessness from people ready to take that leap into action. Everyone is discussing ways in which we can express our outrage, conviction, commitment to inner and societal transformation, hope, and the clear message that we do not accept the situation today. Many of us are finding our way out of the murk through action. We welcome invitations from other groups to join their protests and decide, as individuals, to participate or not.
The opportunity for true and lasting change is upon us. Let us decide today that we are ready to do what it takes to make it happen, despite the obvious obstacles. This swelling towards action is the beginning of a moral tsunami. May we all stand strong and committed at the crest and do our work diligently in its aftermath.
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Thank you for your letters. I can be reached at magisip@yahoo.com. No attachments or junk please. Log on to www.truthforce.info for true and good news.
