A zombie strikes again!
By Farah G. Decano
“SON, behold thy mother.”
That was Jesus Christ entrusting his mother, the Virgin Mary, to his beloved disciple John. This is also interpreted as the Lord’s instruction to the faithful to consider her as the mother of Christianity.
Such is His love for His mother. Remember the wedding at Cana? Jesus was not set to perform the miracle of turning water into wine at that time, but out of reverence for the Virgin Mary, He submitted to His mother’s cue when she verbalized her observation that the people at the wedding had no more wine. He honored her with unparalleled devotion and willed her a position of greatest respect before He died on the cross.
“Honor thy father and mother.”
This is the fourth commandment. It immediately follows the first three commandments, which govern our relations with and conduct towards God. It is also the only commandment that holds a promise.
In His creations, we see God’s love for the repetition of designs. We see orchids that look like doves and cats, mollusks that seem like human parts, insects that are similar to branches, and anemones that present themselves flowers. It is not unusual, therefore, if we see God’s pattern in holding parents in high esteem. And He has been consistent about this.
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The incident below recounted to me by a lawyer friend made me write above discussion on God’s love for parents. But I will repeat my discourse on a time-honored value in the later paragraphs.
So my friend was in a pharmacy when a woman who seemed to belong to the upper middle class publicly lashed out at her mother for forgetting to pay an internet bill. The humiliated mother, almost whispering, attempted to appease her daughter by offering to rush payment for other household bills. The daughter denied her mother by sprinting to the door for a quick exit. The poor old woman was left at the counter to quietly pay for her medicines. According to my friend, the mother worked as an OFW to afford to send this child to private schools and to a university outside of Pangasinan. And the daughter, who is now gainfully employed, does not contribute a peso to household expenses.
I do not know the entire story that led to the adult child’s impertinence, but surely there must be a respectful way for one to express frustration. At best, the daughter could have just decided to bite her lip and postpone discussion of the matter in privacy.
The members of Generation Z, and I am zeroing in on the Generation Zombies among them only, will probably stand pat on their conviction that the adult daughter has no obligation whatsoever to help in the household. They strongly condemn “utang na loob” as a manipulation strategy used by parents and politicians to control the youth.
It is unbelievable that members of Generation Zombies have been misguided to take their wokeness to the extreme as if they are sleepless brain-dead who cannot think. They lambast anything that will restrain their personal liberties forgetting their roots and the beauty of their own culture.
Let me discuss this again. “Utang na loob” arose from our ancestors’ “pakikipagkapwa.” Unlike our western counterparts, they put more weight on community welfare rather than individualism. When a favor is extended to someone, the latter incurs “utang na loob” or debt of gratitude. It is something that can neither be paid for nor demanded payment. It is also wrong for the doer of good act to even remind the beneficiary of such “debt.” Otherwise, to do so will be seen as “panunumbat,” a practice that is also frowned upon. Our culture allows the beneficiary of good deeds to take it upon herself or himself, without being told, to observe debt of gratitude. It is sad that a part of our uniqueness as Filipinos is being trashed by many of our own youth.
Foreigners, who are tired of individualism in their countries, actually admire and praise our custom on pakikipagkapwa. Perhaps, we should seriously rethink how we treasure our own.
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