'... limit yourself but don't let others do it for you ... ' of gracie and obama

this line came from the movie "gracie". it's a movie about a girl who wanted to play soccer for the boy's team and had to fight for it even though no rules said she couldn't. it was breaking down the gender stereotypes. there was something similar in the movie "the pursuit of happyness" about not letting anybody say that you can't dream.

sometimes, it's all too easy to ride on the negativities of people and accept them as truths about ourselves. the discouraging "you can't do it" was just turned into a resounding anti-cry by obama's "yes, we can". it was and still is the american battle cry. and for that i admire the americans because they always believe in themselves that indeed they can do it. it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

watching obama give his victory speech brought tears to my eyes. i was also so touched and moved that i sat shaking in my seat. i was hoping the same would happen to the philippines. that change will come to us and that we will have a mind set of hope and that with collective action, we can improve our country. i hope the statement "nothing ever changes" will be removed from our vocabulary.

but the statement is true not only for our country but also for ourselves. in those moments of doubt and the times that we are all too willing to become victims and resign ourselves to the places people have accorded us - let us stand up and say "yes, we can!" for we truly can. it's one thing to know your limitations but it's also as the quote from gracie ... it's another to let someone else do it for you. do you want to be a victim or do you want to say "yes, i can"?

and also we should not perpetuate the negativity in other people. it's one thing to offer a suggestion for improvement. it's another to destroy someone because of over criticism. building up people to who they can be makes a difference. everybody is insecure, even the most confident of people. even a tower built on rocks when chipped away at the base collapses to ruins.

i was just speaking to a friend and she brought up the topic of unexpected affirmation and that we are so keen to notice the bad things in a person and yet neglect to recognize the good qualities in them. we are marred by the spots yet the whole person is beautiful. it's like having a driftwood and just seeing it for its deadness ... last night i saw a driftwood with the last supper etched on it. i was so amazed. who would have thought to give it a second look even more carve it into a masterpiece? it's amazing what a seemingly unproductive thing turns into a beautiful thing. and that's something even dead. what about a live human being? there's so many possibilities ... there's room for growth, chipping, changing and metamorphosing into that beautiful person every body is and has the potential to be.

YES WE CAN!!!