Happy Independence Day!!!

Today is Philippine Independence Day. June 12, 1898 is a date Filipinos remember as the day when then 28-year old General Emilio Aguinaldo declared the independence of the Philippines from Spain.

[caption id="" align="center" width="400" caption="Venue of the Declaration of Philippine Indepence on June 12, 1898. Photo taken from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aguinaldo_Shrine_(Kawit,_Cavite).jpg"][/caption]

It was a very short-lived independence though. The Americans whom Aguinaldo thought to be his allies turned out to have other ideas. It colonized the Philippines and ran after Aguinaldo as a bandit. It wasn't until July 4, 1946 when the Philippines had its "real" independence.

For some Filipinos, the day Cory Aquino took the reins of power from Marcos in 1986 was the real independence day.

I have the privilege of having first-hand stories to tell my son and daughter about the 1986 events. Back when I turned 17 years old, as freshman in U.P., I, along with classmates and dorm mates, went to "PTV4" to join the thousands of others massing around its fences.

The government station "PTV4" in 1986 is the present-day "ABS-CBN." That was an entire story by itself. Back in 1986, that station turned against Marcos, and there were fears that Marcos would bomb that station. People massed up around it to support that station against Marcos. I was one of these people.

The other story I could share was the day Marcos left Malacanang through a US helicopter. The night he left along with his entire family, people were inching their way towards Malacanang walls and presidential guards didn't fire a single shot at them. Whether it was because of direct instruction from their "boss" or conscience at work or the realization of its futility, I didn't know.

I was in Malacanang early the next morning to join thousands of others to rejoice being inside what was once an invincible fortress. There was a soldier there, armed to the teeth, just walking around. I approached him and asked which side he was on. He said, he was "neutral." I was a naive 17-year old that time. Did I actually expect him to say, "I was on the side of ..."?

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Shown in photo is the Philippine Flag as created by my 6-year old son. I can't help but be touched by it."][/caption]

Having first hand stories is a good thing. They make history feel real and help you convey the sense of patriotism that our country is oozing with.

But are such first-hand stories necessary to fully convey the spirit of Independence Day? Hmmm, maybe not. What do you think?

Does Independence Day have any meaning to common Filipinos these days?

What stories do we tell our children about Independence Day?

May your son model on you rightly.


Marvin
RaisingFilipinoBoys.com

P.S. #1 To me, the government is doing a tremendous thing of putting the Philippine flags along the streets of our provinces and cities in the months of June. The flags throw off a certain kind of spirit that resonates with our sense of patriotism and love for country.

P.S. #2 These flags do a great thing for kids too! My son saw these flags. Though I know him to replicate on lego or drawing book whatever he sees as exciting, it was still a surprise for me to see him show off the Philippine flag that he drew on a piece of paper, colored it with crayon, attached to a stick and displayed in our home.