I just really wanted to get your attention with the title but it should really be, 15 things to imitate from Rizal (but its too long and too straightforward).
Fifteen days to Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s 150 birthday, while trying my best (bearing) to listen to mostly nonsense and repetitive homily this morning (Diocesan priests seriously need lessons on writing and delivering homilies), my thoughts flew and started to list the most notable and admirable traits of our national hero. Last March, I was given the opportunity to learn more about Rizal, write and share about him and the life he has lived with an objective of fully introducing him to a group of young Indigenous People. For most of the group I brought to Dapitan (where Rizal was exiled for 4 years), Rizal was merely a name they needed to memorize for history class. In that exercise I renewed my “love” and admiration for this man.. And now can easily list 15 (or more) things about him worth idolizing and emulating.
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1.His Love of Language
I’ve already said this in a previous blog post but I will say it again. Everybody ought to emulate Rizal’s love of language. He stressed in his writings the importance of loving our OWN language: to use it and be proud of it. But he also didn’t just use our language, he had this desire and drive to learn more languages to be able to engage with people outside the Philippines. Rizal had knowledge in 22 languages: Tagalog, Ilocano, Bisayan, Subanun, Spanish, Latin, Greek, English, French, German, Arabic, Malayan, Hebrew, Sanskrit, Dutch, Catalan, Italian, Chinese, Japanes, Portuguese, Swedish and Russian. Heck that’s sense of “globalization” in the 1890s!
2.The Environmentalist in Rizal
In Dapitan alone Rizal gave importance to planting various types of trees, including endemic ones that could help biodiversity. He knew the benefits of trees, of bamboos particularly to giving more water for his home in Talisay and to most of the city.
3.His Love of Family
While we all know he loved the country, his life also showed how much he valued his family. Rizal’s admiration for his brother Paciano and his closeness to his mother alone are noteworthy. As he was the “baby” brother of most of his sisters, he was also pampered and well loved but Rizal never fell short of giving back the love. His chosen medical specialty was to cure his mom and in his last days on earth, he made sure to communicate with his sisters.
And did you see his letters to his family?
4.His Business Sense
Rizal was adventurous and tried his luck in business particularly in fishing, hemp and copra industries. He once wrote one of his brother-in-laws that Dapitan province has great potential for a fishing industry (and Dapitan and Dipolog now are well-known for their Sardine Industry – talk about vision). He became succesful in hemp, shipping the said product to a foreign firm in Manila.
I absolutely don’t have any business sense in my blood though I really hope to have some. I think I really need an additional source of income for the many things I want to do and the many places I want to travel to.
5.His Sense of Wonder
He was a scientist first and foremost and his sense of wonder and questioning led him to the discovery of some insects, which was named after him. It was also this childlike discovering that made his life exciting and happy despite the many tragedies and challenges he faced.
6.His Vocation as a Teacher
At a time and place where a teacher was needed, he never backed out of the challenge. When there was no opportunity for the children of Dapitan to pursue high school, he gave them a venue in his home and prepared a curriculum that not only taught them how to read and write but gave the youth an advantage of learning foreign languages and advanced science subjects. His school in Talisay was also the first “leadership” school as he gave them a holistic kind of education that dealt with values and character.
7.That Rizal Studied Well in School (Geeks Rule!)
Well he graduated college (with honors) at the age of 16 you know. Genius! There’s a tip for you just starting off college, try your best to finish on time – tuition and miscellaneous fees are not cheap you know. Graduating on time or early is a great gift to your parents.
8.His Faith (that was more than his Religion)
Yes he defied the friars, wrote about them and their mischievous conducts; they excommunicated him but he never lost his faith in God. In fact, every Sunday in Dapitan, despite being the “topic” of homilies, he heard mass (listened to the word of God). And he “married” Josephine Bracken as a sign of belief in a relationship that is ought to be blessed by the Lord.
9.The Inventor in Rizal
Did you know that he invented his own water system and he did it mostly through reading engineering books? It is also said that while in Dapitan, he invented a wooden brick-maker that can manufacture about 6,000 bricks a day.
10.Rizal’s Generosity
He was generous of time and talent. Like that has not been evident in the previous skills I have mentioned above. Rizal also contributed his talent to the Sisters of Charity who were preparing for the arrival of the image of the Holy Virgin (in Dapitan). He modeled the image's right foot and other details. He also conceptualized its curtain, which was oil-painted by a Sister under his instruction.
Generosity isn’t just about money and almsgiving – sharing of time and talent is even more generous.
11.The “student” in Rizal
Rizal loved books and he mostly learned by reading. He was a constant student, learning things he needed to survive and to make his life happier. He never allowed himself to be tied by “courses” or formal education – his thirst for education and knowledge is definitely admirable.
12.Rizal Felt Things (he wa cried)
Despite giving out a vibe that is confident and strong, he never hid his feelings. When he was angry he showed it; when he lacked trust he didn’t pretend; when he felt homesickness, pain and misery – he cried. Now that’s “a man.”
13.Varied Styles in Writing
He wrote poems, short stories, news articles and ofcourse the novels. He wrote in different languages and of different topics and themes. Sure he evoked our ancestors emotions to yearn and work for freedom – but he also wrote love poems and simple descriptive essays. And even in his novels, you could sense some humor – it wasn’t All Serious.
14.Rizal as a Global Citizen
Well it has to be attributed to the travel and education opportunities he was given abroad. But there, Rizal was an amazing global citizen who had friends all over the world. He knew details of what was happening abroad much as he was working for the liberation of the country. That’s a citizen of the world for you! And at this day and age, being a global citizen is a must – not just for personal reasons but for development of the country and survival fo the earth (environment wise!)
15.The “Lover” in Rizal
You had to expect this in my list! The guy was a “ladies” man who captured more than a dozen hearts – and of different races pa. Well he was brilliant, a linguist and can write, so even though he wasn’t exactly Tall-Dark and Handsome – the girls adored him. Never underestimate the power of WORDS – a poem is much lovelier than a dozen flowers. I’d take a well written love letter over a dozen of flowers any day (although pwede ding kasama yun ng flowers, hahaha). And its not like he had many women at the same time, he had long relationships with his women. That’s a fine man there, don’t you think?
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It is quite impossible to find a Rizal like person nowadays. I bet if he was still alive now, he probably would be a heartthrob – in 15 or more ways. :)
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Special thanks to joserizal.ph for the research I did last March
