Thank You Very Much

As kids, we were taught not to rely on other's grace for our material happiness. That is why you will never hear me say "pahingi ng ganito" or "palibre naman diyan" even to my closest friends. When I needed to borrow money from others, I would never say "pautang". Instead, i would say "pahiram, ibalik ko rin kaagad sa iyo".

I cannot remember if it was my lola who taught me the value of modesty, but it is the guiding principle I follow today. Perhaps, in part, the values taught to me reflect my strong aversion towards material things. It might be the reason why I never enjoyed going to the malls.

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Another trademark of my family is our generosity towards strangers. Even in those days when we almost begged to my relatives for our bigger expenses, my mom let one of her students live with us. In exchange for her food and lodging, she would help me and my sister in our assignments and do some home chores during her free time. She now works at Ateneo a decade after she graduated from college. Imagine her fortune jump from being a mere nakikitira to being a woman of high stature. Ang galing no? And what's so amazing about her story is that she still remembers us. She would drop by from time to time to see my mom and have an update on each other's lives.

Her example was repeated many times over. We helped strangers graduate from college in exchange for helping us do our house chores. Even now, part of our earnings go into supporting extended family members who call my mother their madame. They all have their duties and responsibilities to perform. That is why nobody complains when their presence add to our already heavy financial burdens.

From my mother's example, I learn that it is better to give than to receive. Strange as it may seem, but despite our big family budget, we never feel any serious shortage of funds. I guess that is what you call Divine Providence. The same thing was said by my aunt during our last bonding. When a serious affliction prevented her to go to work a few years ago, all the generosity she extended to others suddenly poured back to her.

You can call it a Miracle, but that is what I call the Universal Law of Balance.

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That is why when I had to give up a part of my personal happiness and security to grant my partner's wish to have his own laptop, I took it by heart our karmic role as providers. My ancestors, when they were still landlords in our home province of Marinduque, were known to shelter farmers inside their huge house during a heavy storm. My mother and her sisters are gracious towards others in their respective fields. In return for their graciousness, nobody among my cousins ended up being a failure in life.

It is like they do selfless acts only to attract more blessings, and the more they do, the more it goes back to them.

The cycle of kindness makes you think sometimes.

When my turn comes to receive a blessing or a big favor from someone, my biggest worry is how to respond to such graciousness, knowing that I am usually the one who does that to others. I don't know, maybe after relying on myself for so long, I do not know how to react in such situations. I know others would be very much happy to receive a big libre or favor from someone, but for me, such libre or favor bears a heavy responsibility.

It must be shared to other people who deserve it.

I received this hi-tech gadget from a friend yesterday. Much as I would like to tell more about how such smart phone got into my hands, I prefer to keep things to myself. Na-jajahe pa rin kasi ako eh. Hehehe. To be honest, never in my life would I acquire such phone. Not that I cannot afford it, but I would rather keep my money for other uses.

Since I got the very expensive phone for free, it inspired me to Pay it Forward.

That way the blessing I received will not dwell on me but would be passed on to others.

And who knows, such little gesture would be passed on and on, until it becomes a serious movement that would eventually put back kindness and compassion to our increasingly self-centered world.

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Meanwhile, Chris (Jay Mohr), a journalist, is trying to find out why a total stranger gave him a brand new Jaguar S-Type car after Chris' old 1965 Ford Mustang was damaged in a car accident. The stranger's only explanation is that he is simply "paying it forward". When Chris asks him for more information, the man explains that, when he recently visited a hospital while his daughter was suffering an athsma attack, a gang member suffering from a bullet wound actually took up a gun to force the doctors to look at the man's daughter before she collapsed, prompting Chris to begin his search again.

- Wikipedia, Pay It Forward (Movie)