Last day
Tomorrow is the final day before we officially welcome the last month of the year - December. It is the month to receive the mandatory bonuses from our respective companies and also the month for Christmas and the New Year's Eve. By now, we already have a foretaste of the upcoming season, with decorations in full blast everywhere to carols blaring in every speaker in any establishment. Of course, people will be busy buzzing the malls shopping for the perfect gift for the godchild.
But before we welcome the season, we have allocated a day to honor one of our national heroes: Gat Andres Bonifacio. He was no Rizal;they were complete opposites. Rizal came from an elite family, the Bonifacio didn't. Rizal was known to give unrelenting opinions and foresight on the status of the country with his writing while Bonifacio was more proficient using action such as spoken words and organizing a group to oust those in power.
The group is famously known as the KKK or the Katipunan. It was responsible for the many uprisings in the country with the aim of overturning the Spanish rule in the country. It wanted them out for good so the Philippines could be independent, break free from the foreign rule that seemed to have taken a toll on them. Rizal never wanted a revolution, but his writings seemed to have sparked the minds of the likes of Bonifacio who was very passionate.
Yes, I haven't met him in person but historical accounts could tell us how he rose from the ranks in the Katipunan and eventually became a pillar in Philippine history. His work was replicated in the different parts of the country with an ultimate goal of independence. A lot of those who came before him had a lot of accomplishments and also failures which disbanded them at some point.
Yet, the most mind-boggling question that everyone asks until today: Who should be the national hero? Every college student who is undergoing the history subject should know what each did for the country. Bonifacio was like a millennial, young and full of vigor, always ready to break the status quo for a dream everyone wanted to achieve. Rizal was rather prim and wanted to keep things in order while trying to fix the status quo. Both contributed a lot to the formation of the country's history, especially during the most trying times. But only one has to receive the title "national hero". But I guess that's not what's important, it would be better if we honor them both for all their tireless efforts.
Tomorrow is Bonifacio Day, which is dedicated to the man who fought hard. The honor for him on this day might only be secondary because his legacy for the people to keep on fighting will continue. Another rally is set to take place yet again in hopes of persuading the Supreme Court to reverse the decision on the burial of the remains of then president Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. We remember the great man who is Bonifacio every time the streets are full of people who look and act the same. His fire to lobby for what is right has never faded and still retained in the young.
I do not know how you will be spending the last day of November. December is just around the corner and we welcome it with open arms and hearts but it is our obligation to never forget our history to have a destination.
Bonifacio may have already passed this world but his spirit lives and even emulated in every Filipino who knows what he fought for.
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