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Wednesday, July 29, 2009

The Fire of Idealism

by Aileen Sempio-Viray
Originally published at My Big Drama Called Life


I have heard a lot of talks about a “New World” that is fed with the fire of idealism of people from all walks of life who are disgruntled and frustrated with how our lives are turning out these days. From this feeling of hopelessness exudes a lot of idealism in people’s hearts to somehow find a way to change the world. This fire of idealism is also believed by others to materialize as the much talked about prophetic doomsday event in the year December 2012.

According to Wikipedia, the 2012 doomsday prediction is a present-day cultural meme proposing that cataclysmic and apocalyptic events will occur in the year 2012. This idea has been disseminated by numerous books, Internet sites and by TV documentaries. The forecast is based primarily on what is claimed to be the end-date of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, which is presented as lasting 5,125 years and as terminating on December 21 or 23, 2012, along with interpretations of assorted legends, scriptures, numerological constructions and prophecies.

The Hollywood film 2012 shows the Mayan calendar will be ending in 2012 and how a large group of people must deal with natural disasters such as volcanic eruptions, typhoons and glaciers. But is it really the kind of doom that we will have in 2012 or is it just a fear lurking in our mind? What about transition? or transformation? How does this fire of idealism relate to the creation of a “New World”? Do we need to save our physical planet in 2012 or is it our souls that need to be saved?

A New Age interpretation of this transition posits that, during this time, the planet and its inhabitants may undergo a positive physical or spiritual transformation rather than an armageddon, and that 2012 may mark the beginning of a newer sociopolitical age for the global community.

If you browse through Facebook, Multiply, or any other free-access social networking websites, you can read about this idea or consciousness in different forms. Some people even use this as their propaganda for running a public position in the upcoming 2010 Philippine Election or maybe they have the pure intentions of trying something to change the world. Even the great musician Michael Jackson composes and sings of changing ourselves for a better world. But how do we do that? It was MJ who said, “There’s nothing that can’t be done if we raise our voice as one.” But right now people who raise their voices are rather blackmailed, kidnapped, tortured or killed and if they ever survive, they live in constant fear. How do we overcome the fear? How do we get out of that world of fear? Where is the road towards a better and “New World”?

We all know that our country is poor and around 20 million of our people hungry? According to Time magazine, a generation or almost 10 million of our children are growing up without a mother or father because at least one of their parent has to work abroad. Perhaps part of the reason why we are as we are right now is because too many of us — his or her name and face — are still not so comprehensible. So another big question to answer is “WHO AM I” anyway? And what has this got to do with the change that is needed to create this idealistic “New World”?

I’ve read in a message forwarded to me on Facebook from a friend who got it from the group and account of Col. Ariel Querubin (one of the members of the Magdalo group, a very courageous reform group) that Col. Querubin is running for a seat in the senate in the next 2010 elections. He said…

“Life has presented to me in many ways, from my exploits in the field that eventually earned me the Medal of Valor, a new lease on life after being left for dead in 1989 and to my current incarceration. During all these episodes of my life, I have both witnessed and felt human suffering and desolation. After a long process of discernment while in confinement, I resolved to do something about human suffering - not through any other modality but through faithful, competent and committed public service.”

His words are all over the internet like http://pagodkanaba.blogspot.com, http://lightafire2.blogspot.com, http://northphiltimes.blogspot.com, and more. I like this part where he said,

“Even if we all work for a vibrant and prosperous Philippines, my dream is for every Filipino to enjoy the essence of freedom from poverty, fear, and injustice, to feel the tangible benefits of good governance, and to live comfortably in a society that fosters the unity of the family, protects human rights, and uphold the dignity of all.”

Nicanor Perlas just recently wrote this on Facebook (from the Science of the Impossible and Societal Transformation III)...

“If we feel hopeless and impotent, it does not necessarily mean that this negative self-image of ourselves is true. We have only forgotten the profound creative power that lies within us. We will only make our hopelessness and our impotence real if we believe and act upon our negative and self-limiting beliefs.

When we are in our creative moment, nothing is ‘impossible’. To say ‘impossible’ is simply to admit that our current level of ordinary thinking cannot grasp the complex logic of an Infinite Intelligence which forms and shapes the birth and future of planets, stars, solar systems and galaxies that abound in the universe. Our notion of ‘impossibility’ ends when we enter into the flow of this Infinite Intelligence that allows us to peer into future possibilities. In our creative state, we have glimpsed, we have tasted the real possibilities of the future from the creative Source of the future itself, the realm of Infinite Intelligence.

There is a new world wanting to be born and it cannot be stopped. As long as there are individuals who have the courage to take risks and courageously act out of their highest ideals and deepest convictions, then the "impossible" will become real. Then new worlds will be born out of the ashes of corrupted and morally decadent societies.”

Another internet icon to watch out for is Juana Change. Try this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_Hy-V0MUmo and you’ll end up not just enlightened but laughing as well. Juana Change instills this fire of idealism in each Filipino’s hearts perfectly well by using wit and humor. I can’t find the right words to describe her but you will grasp what I am trying to say by watching her video.

TRIUMPH OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT

This fire of idealism is also very much alive in the hearts of non-political figures especially in NGO groups. One woman, whom I hold dearly deep in my heart, stood up not just to shout change but really spent her whole life trying to find a way to instill change in her own small world. This small world now turned into a very big network of different worlds that have the same goal… that is to save our women, the carers of our children and especially our children, the hope of our tomorrow from abusive people and syndicates who prey on their innocence. She recently garnered several awards for her heroism for fighting modern day slavery and her name is Ma. Cecilia Flores-Oebanda. She is a real inspiration not just to us Filipinos but also to the rest of the world.

I myself have that fire of idealism triggered since I was a child and re-awakened by my desire to live a better life after I survived my cancer. I am still struggling to survive… yet to wait for December 2010 (if God allows) and see how the transformation will happen. For the meantime, I write my thoughts out to share the wisdom that I learned when I faced my own mortality. It was a difficult journey but I learned a lot. I understood more what love and forgiveness are, how patience can open greater opportunities and why things happen as they are. I also realized that faith is something you hold on to when all your hopes fail and God never lets us down. Its just that we are too proud to call on Him whenever we are lost and afraid. God has always been there for us and as MJ sang in his song “I’ll be There”… God is saying, “Just call my name… and I’ll be there.”

Life is God’s gift to us. What we are is perfect in His eyes and it is His gift to us but what we make of ourselves is our gift to God. So I guess with this in mind we better stop pointing fingers at others and start looking inside our thought, our hearts and our minds and find a way to change for the better in order to be proud to face our Creator when the time comes for us to go home. Maybe this is just a fragment of that great transformation that is going to happen in 2012 but a lot of us already has the feel to somehow grasp this upcoming change of consciousness. Maybe it’s the time where peace on earth will be reborn.

I’d like to close this up with a very popular text message that was making the rounds last June 1, mother’s day. This was taken from http://textmates.blogspot.com...

“Life is a constant battle for survival and as we grow older, the rules change on a daily basis. Our mission is not to escape but to survive; not to deal with triumph but to deal with failure; not to run away from fear but to master it. It takes courage to keep on fighting. So if you feel like the rules have shifted one step higher, deal with it with the Creator and never ever surrender for with Him we can have our victory.”

Let us remind ourselves that the Philippines is a great nation even if we don’t realize it yet. We Filipinos know how to get up using our good sense of humor after every storm, we have the capacity to do great sacrifices for the sake of our families, we also come from a long line of courageous heroes who gave up their lives for the sake of our country and we believe in the Almighty who always teaches us to have faith not only in ourselves but to Life and God whom we can always rely on but most of all we have the determination and strength to endure any trials in life.

It’s not that we easily forget the wrongdoings that have been done to us. It’s just that we are a forgiving nation but don’t let that capacity to forgive be used against us and the future of our nation. There is such a thing as tough love which is applied only to uphold the principles and dignity of what a true person is.

As MJ said in his “Heal the World” song… “Heal the world, make it a better place for you and for me and the entire human race… There are people dying, if you care enough for the living make a better place for you and for me.”

We should never stop believing in a better world. I will start change within myself, get to know the real me and change for the better hoping this would help create a better world. I am proud to be a Filipino and I pledge to live a dignified, principled and courageous life with love in my heart to guide me and compassion to care for my fellowmen.


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