“We Hold the Future” makes a ripple in the Philippine blogosphere!
On the same day that we conclude the academic portion of Pisay Meets World and prepare to launch far and wide into the internet, the group of Paolo Maceren, Felize Mendoza, Brian Espiritu, DJ Ramones, and Benjamin Tuason attract attention with their video, “We Hold the Future”!
Sonnie tells Felize and her group that “in your quest for excellence, never ever forget the only nation we’ve got…”
Also, Ma’am Dine Racoma writes “We can help them make the difference, by giving 5 minutes of our time, and posting our comments in You Tube! A little gesture will make these fine young scholars, tomorrow’s leaders, know that we care for them. Thank you, dear friends.” She is also a big fan of the project and is on a personal crusade to let it be known. Thank you very much, ma’am! 
And finally, Jhay Rocas talks about the video in an entry, “Hope of the Motherland”. He writes,
What’s even better is that this particular group of students belong to that future and in the video they made they are sampling to us the very things we need for a bright future: high dreams, hope, idealism, principles and love of the motherland.
The project has also made its way to the Pinoy Moms Network
I am incredibly proud of what we have all achieved in Pisay Meets World. When we began, I posed the question, “What can the world expect from the Pisay scholars in the future?” Then we use the internet not because it’s convenient or ‘hip’, but because it is the medium of communication which future generations will have to master in order to get their ideas across.
And now it is happening.
I hope this ripple turns into a wave that will remind all of us of how much our youth have left to offer.
Not all of them want to leave the country, nor work in call centers, nor work and toil for wealth’s sake. The youth today envision themselves as a force for change, and here in Pisay Meets World, we begin that by spreading the message.
make the Filipino proud, Pisay students, you are tomorrow’s leaders!
I salute the dreams of the Pisay students and I wish them success.
If I may inject a suggestion. Unfortunately, the nation cannot wait for our youth to make a difference when they are done with their education. They are needed now. Even now they could be a very effective “force for change”.
comments are coming in, look them up in the following links
Julius Rocas of the Four Eyed Journal
(http://jrocas.com.ph/archives/hope-of-the-motherland/)
Daddy Nice Ash
(http://mrniceash.wordpress.com/2007/03/15/dream-high-pisay/)
Pinoy Moms Network
(http://pinoymomsnetwork.com/2007/03/15/pisay-meets-world-we-hold-the-future/)
Don’t worry, eeneecademah. They are coming.
I just hope that this would not just be a phase they’re going through. You tend to loose some of that fire once you grow old. Then again, I remain as ever, hopeful.
Jhay, there may be no guarantees of the future but that is why I teach — in the hopes that out of my hundreds of students, that if even just one would carry the flame — just one — then that would make all the difference.
hi sir martin,
that is the mindset that I have been arguing against since, the “just one” attitude. if we want change, it has to be a collective change. that is what we should aspire for. the “just one” mindset, similar to “one Filipino at a time” may be signs of mediocrity. let’s dream big for the sake of our nation.
Hi Martin,
With your dedication towards your work, you are doing the Philippines a great favor. May your tribe increase.
I hope these young people will not lose hope on our beloved nation and with governance.
to try their luck in a foreign land.
Pinoy,
I definitely agree with you. Collective change is a must. But if there is one thing teaching has taught me, it is that for us to have one million, you have to start with one.
Handling teenagers has given me some insight into what we may really mean with phrases such as collective change, collective action, and the like. Here in school, we put it simply — “working together”.
Whenever I put forward an objective to the entire class for instance, different classes always arrive at different solutions and answers. But regardless of how they do it, I have observed that key to their success revolves around two things: the quality of their leader, and the capacity for the members to maximize their abilities.
In education, the priority (ideally) is to help each student live out their potential. The curriculum, while it provides us with a shared goal, is only a horizon which all work towards at our own pace. If we impose the fulfillment of an objective (however noble) as the only cause, then there will surely be those left behind. Because quite frankly, different students learn, develop, and ultimately change at different paces.
Such it is with society at large. People find themselves in different places and thus have to satisfy different needs. While we can put forward social change as our agenda — which in itself is defined differently by different people — and effective change, collective or otherwise, will depend on the quality of our leader (a change agent at the least) and the capacity of our people to even think of and ultimately undergo change.
I can understand how “the one Filipino at a time” may sound mediocre, but from the point of view of a teacher it is a laborious task!
Designing lessons that appeal to different students, checking essays of varying degrees of sophistication (and language mastery!), providing feedback and insight into each student — this is no small task. 
It is exasperating but ultimately, worth it.
In saying that I would be fine if at least one student carries on the flame is my way of being content with my fate as a teacher: that the result of my hard work can only be really seen years from now — especially that my subject is social studies where we talk about how societies rise, fall and change.
And of course, whatever my students become in the future — whether they become men and women of service, or otherwise — will be a reflection of how well I’ve taught and perhaps, inspired them during our short year together.
I don’t want to wait for change as much as anybody, but I believe in the power of education. It is thanks to my own great teachers that I have forgone more lucrative careers in order to teach and open horizons for the future generations.
While I may not tell them how to live their lives, it is my hope that at the end of the day, they just find life worth living. It is my hope that they decide to live their lives for themselves but with an awareness of how they can make a difference in others’ lives.
After all, my own teachers made me believe in me, and it is with thus that I do the same.
Thank you and cheers!
Martin
P.S. Sorry kung napahaba, your comment really made me think. Thank you for the brain food!
Sonnie,
Thank you for supporting our kids’ endeavors! It really means much to all of us!
And thank you for the kind words. I really do my best.
Over the past year, I’ve learned a lot about how our kids feel about our country (and leaving or staying in it) and government. For their final individual essays, I made them write a response to this question, “Do you believe that you live in a society that can make your dreams happen?”
I’ll be sharing their answers and insights very soon.
Thanks and more power!
Martin
I respect the ideals that you hold, but the quest for excellence can be achieved through a number of ways. Reasons for leaving the country and working in call centers doesn’t really equate to toiling for wealth’s sake. I didn’t know that you can be condemned by wanting to provide for even just the most basic needs of your family.
Workers leaving the country use sadness for a pillow and solitude for a blanket; people working in call centers turn night into day, put up with the insults of irate customers, subject themselves to the dangers and numerous illnesses brought about by having to work on a graveyard shift.
If one has other options, choices that can withstand the blows of our deteriorating economy…alternatives that doesn’t cause a strain to one’s role as a parent, a provider…believe me it would also be nice to live a normal life.
Tequila,
I agree. The kind of society we live in dictates the dreams and ambitions we can hold in our hearts. To most, it is to live from day to day. It is my challenge to those who have been given more to give more. That is a challenge I face up to every day.
Martin
P.S. Yeah, I’ve worked in a call center too until PSHS saved me. That was quite a life.
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hmmmm…very interesting!
Thanks google