Life is good. No, life is GREAT. There's always going to be something amazing waiting for us around the corner if we choose to seek it. In life, there are a million opportunities and it's up to us which ones we take, which ones we're going to let change our lives; for better or for worse. Only we can see them, and only we can choose to make them a reality.
Unfortunately, not everyone sees it this way. Not everyone is as optimistic as me. Not everyone believes they have a chance at a better life.
When I learned about #GLOBEProjectWonderful2014, I was immediately drawn to the fact that it was this amazing chance to finally help those in need on a national scale; how you winning means getting your wish for the country somehow granted by the charitable efforts of Globe. It's just not something that happens everyday, and it just might be the miracle that thousand, no, millions of people have been waiting for. :)
For my entry, I've prepared a little photo gallery of sorts to help me explain my wish for the Philippines.
My life is better than most as I've been blessed with things far beyond my comprehension, and for them I am eternally grateful. I get to experience these beautiful sunsets from our living room.
At the end of the day, I can relax on my own bed without a care in the world. I can close my eyes and that'd be it. The day would be over.
I go to one of the top universities in the country everyday, and there, I get to learn how all these amazing things; things that are privileged to those who can afford this level of education.
But that's just the thing: education shouldn't be limited to the privileged. Education shouldn't be something attainable by being "affordable." It should be for the privileged, it should be for the less fortunate, it should be for everyone.
Remember that random public school you pass by from time to time? In there could be some of the most amazing people that this nation has ever seen. In there could be the kids that will eventually change the world. A school is a place brimming of human potential waiting to be molded and developed, and it doesn't matter if it's some fancy exclusive school or a simple but adequate one like the ones we usually see. Everyone needs to learn, everyone deserves to be aware; everyone has a right to be educated.
In that crowd could be a future leader, a future architect, a future engineer, and a future educator; the possibilities are undeniably endless.
And it hurts to think that these kids only represent a tiny fraction of the young population that have yet to experience what it feels like to be in a classroom.
We see all these children in their little uniforms going to their schools and we forget the ones that aren't. We forget the ones that are outside our horizons of comfort. We forget about the kids that we see begging for alms along the freeway. What about them? What about their future?
They continue to live their life believing that it will be their one and only reality until they perish, and it's just painful beyond belief to see. There are programs and there are charities, but normal people, people like me, we just can't save them all, can we? And that's our reality.
But with Globe's new project, I believe it can this huge leap forward; a leap to the "bigger and brighter future" that we only read, hope, and pray about. That is, until today. People like me are given this newfound hope that, maybe, we can make a difference through the little things we do. Maybe, we can finally help.
The one gift that I would wish for the Philippines is education for all. It's not enough that we have all these charity drives, because after them, what are the less fortunate to do? What can they do? No, it's not enough that we give and give and give. It's time that we help them stand up on their own to finally let them have some independence, to finally give their life a sense of meaning, to finally see them unshackle themselves from their hopelessness.
They deserve it. They all do.
What about you? What's your wish for the Philippines? Comment it below!
"If there's one thing you can give to the Philippines, what is that gift?"
The most creative one will win an iPad Mini 2, while the next fifteen (15) will win a GLOBE Tattoo Stick as well as GLOBE Prepaid Cards! Good luck! :)
Personaly I agree with you , my 1st concern in our country is corruption indeed.. theres a lot of children out there needs our help but sadly it turns not right.. great photos by the way :)
ReplyDeleteIf there's one thing that I can give to the Philippines, it would be COURAGE. Courage wherein everyone is not afraid to fight the corrupt government, the manipulative media and the oppressive capitalists.Courage in a sense that every Filipino would not be afraid to be a catalyst for change. Courage wherein everyone is brave enough to participate instead of merely turning a blind eye to what is really happening...
ReplyDeleteMy wish for the Philippines would be that Filipinos never lose hope. Hope, for me, is such a strong force that keeps people going. It motivates every Filipino to strive more and do better. At the end of the day, even though political issues, corruption, and natural disasters are at hand, there's still that glimmer of light that makes you smile and want to live. There's this hope that tomorrow will become a better day. There's this hope that in the future, the Philippines would become one of the world's leading countries. And that's what makes Filipinos do their best in all things they do.
ReplyDeleteI wish for our country to have love. The kind of love that is for the Filipino race and for every countrymen no matter what social class they belong to, the kind of love like Korea wherein the stock market and people would sacrifice and open late just so that their next generation college students will not be stuck in traffic on their way to their examining stations during their national college entrance exam day, the kind of love like Vietnam wherein whenever there is a natural disaster and people have been harmed, they would put aside their salaries for one or two days just so that they won’t have to ask for foreign aid and so that they could tell themselves that their countrymen helped them and not others and, the kind of love that we would have for each Filipino to let them know that someone cares, to let them know that someone has their backs covered and to let them know that we will rise and fall together as one are only some of the many kinds of love that we could so offer to this country because in the end no matter how dark and chaotic our days may seem, love for your own will endure forever.
ReplyDeleteI would wish that Filipinos exude nationalism. I think this is the main problem we are facing right now. We aren't proud of being Filipinos. We would rather go abroad and pursue jobs there - living the American Dream. But can't we live the Filipino Dream as well, here in our hometown. We normally look up to people who go abroad rather than those who serve our own country. If all Filipinos were nationalistic, then most of our political issues and economic problems would diminish. We would help each other to strive for a better future instead of selfishly pulling each other down. It's time for a change. And it starts with every single one of us.
ReplyDeleteI agree that education should be made more affordable so many people would have a shot at a good education. It also helps for more volunteers to go on grass root based teaching.
ReplyDeletethe best gift would be self-discipline, the Filipino people need this more than anything else and with this self-discipline given to every citizen, everything we need and want would just follow.
ReplyDeleteI wish that those Filipino people will have more faith in themselves and believe that every mistake they made is another step to greater success!
ReplyDeleteYes, education should be the priority. If people are educated enough they will be more empowered to do things and make better and critical decisions. So, my wish is for education to be prioritized in our country.
ReplyDeleteEducation should definitely be one of the top priorities. How bout scholarship programs from Globe. That would be great. :)
ReplyDeletexoxo,
Gelleesh.com
the place looks familiar..especially the photos of the students, is it along tayuman? i came across their while driving..hahah good perception! i agree, better education for each and everyone, thing is some of us cannot support the non-stop increasing of tuition fees so even if parents wanted their children to study in a prominent school t'was impossible so instead they settle for public schools which is supposed to be supported by our local government. I myself when i have time i tried my very best to sit with eldest child and teach him some basics. it would help i guess..
ReplyDeleteIf there's one thing I wish for the Philippines is to help each other. We should unite and choose the right person who can help us build our country. We have nothing if we don't help each other. And also we should always pray because God will always be there and would never leave us! I hope the education can also be accommodated with the poor ones. :)
ReplyDeleteI think we all need reminding that access to quality healthcare is not a privilege but a fundamental human right. Ensuring the overall wellbeing of individuals not only results in being better capable of achieving anything but also ultimately leads to empowerment. And that is the kind of people that every nation needs, for who but its people will lead any country to grow and develop? We need empowered and competent individuals to drive the Philippines to progress. So if I could give any gift to the Philippines, it would be better/full access to quality healthcare. :)
ReplyDeleteIf I had the ability to help the Philippines by giving gift I would give them a Advanced Military equipment – The military served as the protection of a country, it protects not only the higher-ups people but also the overall citizen of the country. To prevent annihilation of our people and country of the possible war that could occur we couldn’t afford to be possibly defenseless and just let the invaders take advantage of us without putting much a fight. And its also help and served our people at time of crisis.
ReplyDeleteComment on my blog too thanks! http://miaamorilag.blogspot.com/2014/01/globeprojectwonderful2014-contest.html
Education will save our country from the social problems that we're facing. I still believe that it's our weapon to end poverty.
ReplyDeleteI personally agree that in many public schools rise great leaders. We have Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago who went to La Paz Elementary School, Iloilo National High School, and the University of the Philippines. Who knows? If we help with this Globe Project, we might have the next Senator Santiago.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with what you said. Lack of education truly is the root of many problems that we have in the Philippines. It's sad to say that education in this country is very underdeveloped to the extent that it is considered a privilege instead of a right.
ReplyDeleteIf there was one thing, other than education, that I could give to the Philippines, I would give it better media and public affairs. The journalism, political communication, and other news reports in this country often come as a downfall to our own economic advancement. We need a better system for this in order to properly inform the public of important happenings in the government, the state, the country, and the world. I think that this media transparency, this truth, being kept from many Filipinos hinders our knowledge about the things going on in the country.