Res Gestae
Books that speak of numbers
(Second of 3 parts)
The book, “12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country”, is anchored on the wise of Charles Simmons, “Life is made up of little things. Greatness follows if we learn to be great in little things.” Or, Gladwell’s “do not underestimate the power of little things. They can spur a revolution.”
I supposed to attend to a lecture on the subject by the author himself last February 13. Unfortunately, it coincided with one of the very important moments of my life, a milestone in my career (I received an award that day as our agency’s best employee for administration – regional level).
The 12 little things are answers of Atty. Lacson and his wife, Pia, to their so-called formula question – “Will the Philippines progress in the next 20 years?” They asked themselves of the question to resolve on their plan to migrate to the US or Canada . Should the answer is YES, they will stay; and, if NO, they will relocate to the place of “milk and honey”.
Like the many of our fellow Filipinos, the couple saw our country, Philippines , becoming hopeless year after year. “But after a long discussion, they could not give a definite answer to the question. Until they realized that actually the answer to that question is in them. The country will improve if they do something about it. It will not if they do not do anything.”
Indeed, after reading the book, I realized that our country, our beloved Philippines , will not improve if we – individually and collectively – will not lift a finger to make ourselves part of the solution and not of the problem.
We often throw the blame to our political leaders, leaving on them the responsibility to solve the dysfunctions in our society. We keep on raising the issue of corruption as the cause of poverty…of undelivered social services. We are fond of passing the buck to others without realizing that many, many, many times we are part of causes of the many problems buffeting our country today.
And, Atty. Lacson is leading us to a great awakening… inviting us to observe the 12 little things that would answer the centuries-old problems that are pulling our country down the drain.
The 12 little things each of us can do to help our country are: 1) Follow traffic rules. Follow the Law. 2) Whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt. 3) Don’t buy smuggled goods. Buy Local. Buy Filipino. 4) When you talk to others, especially foreigners, speak positively about us and our country. 5) Respect your traffic officer, policeman and soldier. 6) Do not litter. Dispose your garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve. 7) Support your church. 8) During elections, do your solemn duty. 9) Pay your employees well. 10) Pay your taxes. 11) Adopt a scholar or a poor child. And, 12) Be a good parent. Teach your kids to follow the law and love our country.
Well, we have heard of people, say our political leaders, stepping up for probable solutions to the problems of this country. However, their solutions are rather “moot and academic”. But here comes Atty. Lacson’s 12 little things; these are solutions to the woes of this nation without needing any legislation. (To be continued)