April 20, 2022
Mobilizing as Thousand Candles of Lights
Even Nature cooperates. A most beautiful sunset backgrounds Leni Gerona Robredo’s rally in Bataan. Folks came out in the thousands. It is no different in a small province like Siquijor, or a much bigger one like Dumaguete, nor a midsized Zambales. Even Japan witnessed its first large mobilization of Filipinos, in the thousands.
The exuberance of joyful dancing, chanting, mobilizing are evident, proclaiming to the world, that the Filipino spirit is alive.
Not to be dragged down by its past, but hopeful for its pink rosy future. Artists paint, sculpt, compose music, write poetry, write essays, publish books and even held their first Bicol Book festival. The poetry book of 100 poems for Leni sold out in no time and now is into its second, might even be third printing.
Like art that is conspicuous everywhere in the provinces, so are spring hot pink hydrangeas, a symbol of authentic expressions of emotions in New York. Dual citizens registered to vote eagerly await their ballots to be mailed by the Consulate offices.
Pink tulips are in bloom, as if to say, our future is bright, for we can write a new narrative of engaging with a trustworthy, smart, honest, incorruptible, dignified 17th Philippine President – isang babae!!
Opo, isang babae and we pray we all get to vote our consciences’ choice of candidates adhering to our values of rule of law, honesty, transparency, and good governance. #NoToCorruption and no to the candidates who represent darkness of theft, tax evasion, misrepresentation, cheating, toxic machismo and an entitled attitude that Malacanang is this tax evader’s home, to this day, billion pesos have not been paid to the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
Overseas voters reported pre-shaded ballots in favor of Sara Duterte in Sweden, Vancouver and Singapore, posting them on Facebook with images. One voter took the preshaded ballot to their local Philippine Consulate and demanded a clean unshaded ballot, tore up the pre-shaded ballot in front of theconsular officials, before completing the legitimate unshaded ballot. Citizen/voters are awake. They are the change that we have been waiting for, as ourselves, eager to have our votes matter in the most consequential elections of all times.
This coming Saturday, April 23 is #LeniRobredo‘s birthday. What is gratifying is seeing my non-political, quiet when it comes to politics, friends who are fully engaged and mobilizing folks to attend the rally in Chatsworth, Los Angeles, CA.
Heroic Leadership as the Jesuits demonstrated to us in more than 5 decades is “being consciously committed to extracting every kernel of potential from every moment. It is a foresight to see that commitment multiplied many times over. Great results emerge, one motivated individual at a time.”
I salute you VP Leni Robredo as you embody heroic leadership of “considering, internalizing, and shaping our collective mission to love our Inang Bayan to the point of collectively making solutions to our common problems.”
Thank you for displaying your courage, your nobility and greatness of heart, mirroring the hearts of our great people, enhancing us all as a people, to be thousand candles of lights for our homes! -@Prosy Abarquez-Delacruz
P.S.
#ArtBreak: “Choose your leaders
with wisdom and forethought.
To be led by a coward
is to be controlled
by all that the coward fears.
To be led by a fool
is to be led
by the opportunists
who control the fool.
To be led by a thief
is to offer up
your most precious treasures
to be stolen.
To be led by a liar
is to ask
to be told lies.
To be led by a tyrant
is to sell yourself
and those you love
into slavery.”
― Octavia E. Butler, Parable of the Talents (1998)