While waiting for my mom to finish whatever she’s having done at the dentist, I grabbed a copy of today’s Manila Bulletin and chanced upon an editorial column by Adrian Cristobal. I’m not an avid reader of the MB as compared to the Inquirer, but I do enjoy reading editorials the most.

Oooh.. I found the article. I guess I will just blockquote some parts that are from his article.

Moveable Fete
Our nationalists complain that we are still dependent on the US for, among other things, economic and military aid, and the direction of our foreign policy. To many Filipinos, the true “mother country” is America and not Spain, which was here for more than three centuries.

Our independence was granted or returned with the Parity Amendment to our Constitution as an exchange deal. For years, we blamed our mass poverty on our continuing dependence on the US until, one brief, shining moment, parity was no longer in force.

Still mass poverty, with her sisters ignorance and disease, is very much with us.

As we no longer have anyone to blame, we blame ourselves, most of all the leaders who have come and gone and, hopefully, are still going. In turn, our leaders blame one another for political bickering and corruption, and then blame the people for lacking unity, the capacity for hard work, and the good sense to elect good leaders.

What, then, is there to celebrate? Life. As a billboard in Makati says, we have one reason for being the happiest people in Asia.

Think about it.

And so I did think about it. Some time during the minutes that passed by after reading several editorials that all pay tribute to the day that is today, I began thinking about what is there to celebrate, what Filipinos should celebrate about, and why this day is still worth celebrating.

Looking back at what our country and what its people have endured and fought for, there really is so much to be proud of. I’m...

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