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Going Back to your Native Land: A Reminiscence

  • Writer: Millard Balatucan
    Millard Balatucan
  • Mar 5, 2017
  • 8 min read

Good morning dear readers and stay still for we are going to lay our insights regarding the quotable quote of Marcus Tullius Cicero.

Cicero once told: "The soil of their native land is dear to all the hearts of Mankind."

Reading the quote is quite easy but comprehending it may be not.

In this Article, we will show you two reasons why no matter where we go, we always crave to go back where we came from, where we gain friends, develop physical characteristics and enjoy life as well.

Childhood Memories and friends

Splashing the rain with our loved ones is an exquisite and joyful moment of our childhood times.

"Remembering childhood memories are one of the most exciting throwback in our life for we are not just remembering our thoughts, but also, we are appreciating the good memories and even the bad ones that made us stronger and capable of standing beneath the ground using our feet." - Jean B. Oco

My godmother, cited above, is one of my aspiring Ninang that teaches me a lot. During our childhood days, she was very strict when we go out and play in the pouring rain. She is always reminding us that the rain in her times is quite different to the rain today for it brings many skin problems due to the pollution. Having my Ninang until this moment is a chance to cherish because the love is very rare and hard to find.

Splashing the pouring rain with my loved ones and friends is a very joyful moment to treasure. It is where I develop my socializing skill and to gain friends as well. Maybe 10 years from now, when I am in the land of Japan to settle my dream, this memory of my childhood is what I will crave all the time.

"Buying you a Balloon and watching it soar in the sky making you cry is the cutest moment of your childhood times." - Judith Cedeño

A balloon that cost Five Pesos when I was 6 years of age is enough to tell the love of my parents imparted between me and my siblings. Today, watching other children play their modern and lithium filled balloon tempts me to buy some too! I just remembered when we are going to church sometimes, I always pull my mother to the Balloon Stand and ask her to buy me some. Filled with excitement, I recklessly let my balloon fly up high and just stood and watch it pop in the sky. Yes, I admit that I do cry a lot. Having that little gift appreciated by me during those times made me tear with joy for understanding that little gifts mean a lot to me. Other children wanted expensive gifts to ask for love in their parents but buying me just a balloon is enough to understand that I am loved no matter how naughty I am.

This reason supports Cicero's quote because it shows our fondness to our parents love that is showed in our own country and place. Even if we travel in other places and our parents are not present, remembering their love is enough to understand why we are born with a purpose and why we are loved for a reason. At this point, we must understand our parents for as we are busy growing up, they are also growing old.

"Watching you play with your little friends and attempting to start a quarrel is a missing moment for not just you develop your bravery, you also develop your fear." - Miler Balatucan

My father once thought that I am fond to start quarrel back in those time and that supports my attitude this present day, maybe. Developing both strength and weakness during my childhood enables me to capture thoughts that I am going to decide and publish. These thoughts are essential for me to understand what are the consequences of my mistakes and what are the valiance that I will make.

I lived at Marikina City for almost 5 years from birth. My friend, Che, always told me that I am Quarrelsome and is a trouble maker. I may not remember that franks, but I do remember how my neighbors and parents discipline me to not repeat the same mistake again. I cannot conclude that in those times I got my attitude, but I can say, that in those times, I gain discipline. This strengthens the bond between me and my friends.

Remembering your childhood memories and friends is not preventable in case we want to relax and find peace and fun at the same time. It just proves that missing the place where we grow up is essential for us to nurture our fantasies deeper. The friends that we gained become dear to us for they are the ones that proves that we are not and never alone in this world. Also, they provided us time and fun that we acquire until this time. So, loving the land is not just the point, loving the society and friends are.

TEENAGE AND IMMATURITY

"You live your life freely in our land, without restrictions and limits, you find trouble." - Mom

Mom told me that in this current year, I am building more of my socializing skills and developing both independence and freedom. This showoff our abilities and talents, characteristics and bond towards others. However, in this open space, we are not aware that we lack family embrace, respect, discipline and obedience. It is a matter of immaturity that happens and sprouted in our places and environment. It is where we learn both good and bad things like confidence, relationships, addiction and crime. In order to support Cicero, let's give an example: When I was at grade 9 on a private school, I lack confidence and cooperation at school because I find myself weak against others. However, when I started my senior high school years on a public school, making assumptions, I build up little confidence and integrity as well. In that point, I started to hypothesize that in different places and environment, we develop new characteristics on the other that we cannot on the other one. This concludes that different places shapes our personality, that's why, when people go to other places, they are not confident to stand in front during their proposals because they are fond to raise their confidence to their native land.

However, in contrary, some persons are confident enough to perform outside the country because they believe that they once stood right in front back in their country, why not stood the same on the other.

In our native land we develop almost everything out of our teen age. We might not listen very well to our parents in times of craving for freedom because they always set limits, but, we listen to others that having our parents beside us is the thing we must never push back for they might scolded us, but they are continuously loving us but never showing it out.

We may consider our place dear when we are teenagers because it is where we hangout with valuable friends, learned to love and get hurt, continued education, learn new brand things and display open feelings towards our environment. Our land shapes us and we portray what our land build us to be.

THINGS WE LOVE IN OUR NATIVE LAND

The following reasons are based on our survey why our native land is dear to all our hearts.

During March 4, 2017, we asked 10 respondents about their opinions on why does no matter where we go, we tend to go back from where we came from. The Ten close families of mine and Ms. Cedeño are:

1. Miler Balatucan

2. Gemma Balatucan

3. Jean Oco

4. Meridith Saliente

5. Jaime Galido

6. Judith Cedeño

7. Tito Oscar

8. Tita Mitang

9. Ate Igray

10. Kuya Mario

...and they gave these following reasons. (I credit myself for the involvement of these persons and they approved to share their insights that proves that the usage of these names are legal and authorized.)

1.The people. Overwhelmingly this is it.

2.The friendliness, the kindness. Wander into a party, even a family function by mistake, they’ll invite you to join. Slip and fall, they’ll rush to pick you up.

3.The laughter. It’s everywhere, everyone is happy. The optimism charts are always way up there. Filipinos are among the happiest in the world. Global surveys validate this claim. And they see the joke, invariably make them. Even lawyers laugh at jokes against them.

4.The musicality. Filipinos can just sing. Karaoke is not the ear-shattering experience of elsewhere, it’s a delight to listen to. Filipinos dominate global singing contests. They were among the top contenders in the recently concluded “Asia’s Got Talent.” And the talent (over)flows into the arts, the artistic talent is captivating.

5.The caring, the sharing. Even the poorest will share a meal. While Filipino nurses and caregivers are deployed all over the world, caring for other people, they do back home too.

6.The loyalty and dedication. Employees, if they believe in you, work and work hard. They stay for 5, 10, 20 years. And don’t work just 8 to 5.

7.Then there’s the beauty. Not just of the people (I wish I had a nice tanned skin) but of the countryside. But the inability to keep things clean, to look after their environment is a sad distraction. Manila was a magnificent city, once. Today streets flood from the garbage in the drains. But go anywhere in the countryside and the sheer beauty just strikes you.

8.The excitement. Ride the rapids, surf the monster waves, or climb perilous cliffs, and it’s all there. But it’s the day-to-day living too. No day is a dull one.

9.The unexpected. Things just aren’t boringly predictable (sorry, Singapore). You never know how things will turn out till they do. And generally in a fun way.

10.The adventure. Every trip is one. Nothing is easy to get to, you can’t just fly in. A two-hour jeepney ride is a given, it’s an adventure—if you are a tourist. You can swim with whales and dolphins, and dive some of the most beautiful reefs in the world.

11.Then there’s the reverence for the elderly. They’re not just discarded, they’re acknowledged, respected, looked after. If you want a place to retire, this is it.

12.Commendable health services. The doctors have always been of the best, many overseas-trained in post-grad work. The weakness of no modern hospitals is now no more.

13.The safety. Yes, safety. What the Muslim renegades are doing in the South is further away than Hong Kong, or as far away as Hong Kong. The communist party’s forays are few. Theft, muggings are no worse than in any country today. Even less I’d venture. Visit the right places, take a little care and the Philippines is as safe as anywhere. 14.The politics. The sheer absurdity of so much of it is thoroughly enjoyable. It’s fun to watch, to read, to wonder at the intricacies, even the foolishness of it all.

15.Then there’s one missing: jai-alai. I’ll never forget the excitement and wonder of that ever so rapid game when I first saw it. Some misbegotten souls banned it because of the gambling. Well the problem wasn’t jai-alai, it was gambling. Now gambling is legal, let’s bring Jai-alai back, rebuild the fronton as it once was. 16.Stretching a piece of string. Whatever you do can always be extended, you can go that extra mile. You can achieve just that little bit more. You can reach what the ladder won’t; the people and systems give you the ability to do so.

But then there has to be some balance. There’s a couple of negatives that really drive me wild. And top of that list is the lack of societal discipline. Traffic is a nightmare because no one obeys the rules. If they did, or were forced to, traffic could flow. Next is maintenance. It just doesn’t figure in people’s concept of living, it just isn’t done. So things fail, break down, and eventually collapse. And no one points out faults so correction can be made. Despite these few things the Philippines remains a great country to live in.

At this point ends our article and we hope that you've learned a lot about why does our native land is very dear in all our hearts.

Please leave comments and additional opinions about our article and we extend great appreciation to our families that helped us to finish this task and share their insights for the accomplishment of this article.

Thank you very much!


 
 
 

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