by: DONALD SEVILLA
UP, UP AND AWAY
These words mark the starting lyrics of a beautiful and lively song that exudes a joyous vibe. Floating above the earth under a canopy of clouds, reaching for the stars riding in a balloon could be exhilarating and exciting.
Yet for us ordinary people on the ground, the reality is far from joyful. For the past two years we had to live with the rising costs of living, fighting tooth and nail to keep up with increasing prices of basic goods that shoot through the roof.
Doing the rounds of our markets, baffles us no end. The cost of a decent kilo of fish is often more than what the average person earns in a day.
So how does one survive this “unrealistic” real world? When what you pay for your needs is more than what you earn? When your basic needs are hardly met and you have to struggle to make ends meet?
We live on borrowed time, on borrowed money and borrowed reality. In other words we live in a bubble of hope, praying that the next day would be better than the one before.
Yet we cannot continue living like this forever. At some point the bubble would burst and we end up realizing with regret how much time and opportunity we had wasted.
A few more months into the year and we shall once again be thrust into a frenzy. When those vying for coveted positions of power and influence will once again inflate our bubbles and keep our hopes up.
Yet the reality is, we never seem to learn. We are tied in bondage to a vicious cycle of hope and surrender. That this is the system we are in and are stuck, pervades our mindsets.
But what must we do? There are no tyrants if there are no slaves, much less no oppressors if we don’t allow it. But truth to tell this is easier said than done.
We have been used to being subjugated for so long that even abused by our own kind we can hardly tell the difference. Politics is propaganda and effective mind manipulation. And politicians are so good at it, that even if they rob you blind, you can thank them for doing so.
Thus are we in for a bitter reality check.We should all be asking ourselves are we better off now when our new overlords took over the reigns of governance? We need not look far for answers. The signs are everywhere and are alarming.
Yet there they are, up, up and away above the clouds, off to some foreign adventure in their Guccis and winter clothes.Their reality is far from ours .
Php200, php300 or php700 a kilo of fish it doesn’t matter to them. Things are only expensive if you can’t afford it. This detachment from reality and the lack of empathy is what sets them apart from us.
So next time we are given a chance to alter our fates, shouldn’t we grab it? It is only during this time of year that they truly become our “public servants” and plead for it. All the rest they are our masters and rule over us.
But have faith, alter our fate.While elections are just around the corner, let us not be deaf nor blind. We put those people up in the clouds and we shall bring them back down.
#realitycheck
#pagmatabohol
#agwantanomore