Shake shock

Just as quickly as we shed tears, the tragedy of the fire at Notre Dame fled our consciousness, replaced by the next cataclysm. Of course, while it burned, the images of Paris’ horror seared into memory, awakening dormant apparitions of a similar picture, 18 years ago. Sept. 11, 2001. Different time, different city. The scale of the devastation and the sense of loss was equally profound. It shook our world.

A previous tumult was diametrically dissimilar, arriving atop shock waves of positivity. The vision evoked was of a different time but, uncannily, of one and the same person. Does the name Tiger Woods ring a bell? For sports aficionados, it was the euphoria over his unbelievable return to glory that Notre Dame diminished. But what a euphoria.

Who doesn’t love a comeback? Michael Jordan, the GOAT (greatest of all time), called Tiger’s win at the Masters (his 5th) “the greatest comeback of all time.”  Woods has always been a freak in the strength of his mind and his body. Steely nerve and determination on top of his power off the tee fueled most of his victories. But these were also the causes of his downfall. His mental composure shattered by the personal scandals, his physicality waylaid by famous injuries. Who dares defy the torque of a golf swing with a fused spine?

It made gushing fan boys and fan girls of the top athletes in all of popular sport. Specially the great players who have shown parallel dominance in individual sports – Tennis, other racket sports, field events – their appreciation of what Tiger Woods has accomplished is more than any of us can identify with. But reading about the shared, lofty and alike experiences of these supermen only served to further highlight the majesty of Tiger’s resurgence. 

Notre Dame was not the only edition in this annus horibilis for religious faiths. On its heels we had the multiple bombings of Catholic churches in the predominantly Buddhist Sri Lanka. And just a month prior, the New Zealand massacre at the Mosque in Christchurch. Different cities, different religious minorities. 

Different shocks, different people. These occurrences had a deep impact on me personally but there are other events around the world, equally affecting to humanity, that would bear on us in different ways. For some it’s the return to TV of the long awaited final season of the phenomenal HBO series Game of Thrones; for others, this ridiculous Oust Matrix. 

But what has affected us equally has been the continuous rumbling from deep inside our core.  The earthquakes have come non-stop. Zambales, Samar. Ilocos Norte and Surigao yesterday. If you listen to scientists, these are all prelude leading up to one big event. Check the Phivolcs webpage – see the listing of earthquakes per day. If not scared yet, then you will be.

I myself was at the 26th floor of a tall building when the Monday 5:11 quake struck. I remember vividly the route I took down the stairs. How could I forget when the pain in my leg muscles jolted me on my every step for days to follow? But central was the utter helplessness in the moment. When you’re high up in the air, every tremor is magnified exponentially. I didn’t think about death but I was this close to resignation and entrusting my fate to powers greater than myself.

There was a defining moment for me when, in the midst of one of the stronger shocks, I thought of grabbing my laptop which had my work. Or maybe my pens. I had to leave that office. It was an easy decision – I left with nothing but a prayer in my head that all would turn out ok for everyone. This was surely the same thoughts in many others. In the end, we are not that different at all.

Tabula Rasa. My son who votes for the 1st time this May asked for my recommendations. That was easy. I gave him my menu of doctor, lawyers, and re-electionists for the Senate. Then he asked a tough one: so, do I fill up the entire slate? 

Good question. A vote for your Congressman may be more of a marker of direct democracy. But the weight of your Congressman’s vote is one in 280+. At the Senate, 12 seats of 24 will be vacated on June 30, 2019. The Philippine Senate is one of the smallest national legislative chambers in countries with republican democracies. Installing 12 new faces constituting 50% of the body, we can have a larger say in how policies are crafted given the weight and proportion of our vote relative to the Senate’s composition. If all our choices end up winning, then we can say that at least half had our backs.

So who to vote for? I am lucky to have watched my son’s grandfather up close, together with the amazing public servants he was lucky enough to serve with. He started out learning and ended up teaching. In the end, he was remembered by his peers for many things but most were grateful for his unselfish sharing of knowledge. To hear these Senators I admire talk of him as a mentor made me doubly proud. 

So what to look for? A solid work ethic, a humility to learn, the generosity to teach and to put in the extra effort. This last one is crucial when surrounded by others not as industrious. Smarts are a bonus. What’s most important is a head screwed on properly and a heart in the right place.