The amazingly large number of people who mourned the death of former President Corazon C. Aquino last Aug. 1 and braved the rains and whatnot to wait for her funeral cortege to pass by from Manila Cathedral in Manila to her final resting place at the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City last Aug. 5 proves how much Filipinos value and respect her for the great things she did for our nation.
To Filipinos everywhere, she will be forever etched in our hearts as an icon of democracy—a simple housewife who knew she was meant for a much grander destiny after the assasination on Aug. 21, 1983 of her husband, the late Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino. Ninoy, on the other hand, earned the country’s respect and admiration for speaking bravely against the injustices brought upon by the Marcos dictatorship in the 1970s and it was Cory who continued his legacy. Both Ninoy and Cory have been dubbed as modern-day heroes, and they will no doubt serve as an inspiration to all in the years to come.
In our minds and hearts, Ninoy and Cory Aquino now join the ranks of heroes from years past. Heroes like Apolinario Mabini, Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Aguinaldo, Emilio Jacinto, Dr. Jose Rizal and others fought valiantly for our country’s liberation and freedom against all odds when the Philippines was under the occupation of the Spanish government. Through them, Filipinos found hope and a sense of peace in the times of struggle and uncertainty.
It was on October 28, 1931 when the Philippine Legislature passed Republic Act No. 3827 to commemorate National Heroes Day, which is celebrated yearly on Aug. 30 but due to a recent proclamation of the current administration, it was changed to the last Monday of the same month. This day is meant to pay homage to Filipino heroes who struggled for peace and democracy for our country.
Still, in these modern times of "fast-paced living," there is a question of how significant this day, National Heroes Day, truly is for Filipinos apart from being a mere headline in the papers, a mere page in history or a mere excuse to take a break from work.
Sure, on paper, we know them well. After all, when we were younger, we spent hours and hours buried in our books to know their stories in order to earn high grades in our exams. We spent hours and hours being taught of how Jose Rizal stood up against the Spaniards through his acts of bravery and his wise words in his masterpieces Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo and how Apolinario Mabini defied his physical impairment to be one of the major instruments in the Filipino’s struggle for freedom against Spanish rule. We spent hours and hours picturing how Andres Bonifacio formed the Katipunan.
But somewhere along the way of growing up and becoming full-pledged adults with families, burgeoning careers, and vacation packages, medical insurance, pension plans, house mortgages and utility bills to pay, we have turned cynical, apathetic at times even, and have lost sight of what was the true essence of those tales of heroism which were taught us: we are all capable of becoming heroes ourselves.
( Published on August 28, 2009 in LifeEASTyle Magazine p. 2 )
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