Liane’s Blog

12 Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country

Today, Zarah gave me this book, with the title just the same as the title of this post. It was written by a really good lawyer by the name Alexander Lacson.

Actually, I hit the shelves of National Bookstore weeks ago (just after NASSPHIL Congress have ended) to scour for this little book. For the reason that, hmm, well you see it was recommended by Ate Ivanna (she’s one of the ates from I Am S.T.R.O.N.G. and I Keep Love Real whom I really idolize, they are just great!). Anyway, so that’s practically the reason why I wanted the book so much!

And today, I received a surprise when Zarah just handed me a fresh-from-the-bookstore copy. What I did? Well I eventually became ecstatic and tored the plastic cover appart, eager to read it. I finished it just after lunch (even if there was a Physics exam first thing in the afternoon :))

I was not dissapointed for one thing. It’s just worth about 150 (at National Bookstore but I’ve heard it’s 100 at World Vision) and it’s way worth than that for my opinion. It’s just a meager sort of book but the message and content really made a big impact upon me.

What hit me big is the story behind the author. Alexander Lacson and his wife Pia had argued years ago if they would migrate to another country because simply put, they don’t see a green pasture ahead of the Philippines’ future. They sort of debated about it (lawyer folks :)). The deciding point was simple yet hard, if 20 years from now Philippines would be better, then they would stay. If not, then it’s bye bye RP.

Well, it didn’t took long before they figured out about it. The answer was, if they stayed and tried to make a better Philippines, then 20 years from now, maybe, just maybe, things would really get better.

And so they stayed. From then on, they became real patriots who did not only worked for the country, but actually did something and recognized their responsibility to uphold our nation’s status.

I was really moved by this book. Simply things like following traffic rules, throwing your garbage properly and asking for receipts, however small these acts may be, they still constitute our large need for improvement and if done by all would make a great uphill curve for this Pearl of the Orient we so love (and still do I hope).

Here is Pageman’s post to this book at Multiply

I think there’s just so much bad things about us. Not our country, us. We complain a lot but do very little to be part of the solution. In my eyes, the Filipino is the problem of the Philippines. That’s how sick our society is today. And it’s up to us if we continue making things worse or all for  the better.

Why not start by buying this book? A hundred fifty will be nothing for most of us who are just as lucky to have a close-to-stable financial status. But you know what, you don’t only make a move to be a better Filipino with this book, you also can help send children to school.

Why?

Well, Alexander Lacson and his wife Pia were not joking when they said they wanted to be part of the solution. They’re giving half of the books’ proceeds to scholarship programs
I want to be like them when I grow up.