Reflection Paper: MADALING MAGING TAO, MAHIRAP MAGPAKATAO

By: Princess Sophia Cagape

It is one of the most used quotations that we Filipinos often hear. This basically
point out that being a person is easy however being human is way difficult. Is it really
being a person and human different? On what manners? And why do we have to know
the deep meaning of this?

The quotation is divided into two sectors, first, MADALING MAGING TAO, in
simple word, being you when you were born, you had already the characteristics
and capabilities which you did not obtained with your own. Being a person of your
own is like a default setting in each of us. It is how you lived and how you survive. It is
given emphasize in the above quotation that it was easy being a person because it is
how you perceived yourself and not depending on what others would think. You just
need to eat, drink, sleep, wake-up and so on. Quite easy right?

However, like coin with two sides the second sector of the quotation, MAHIRAP
MAGPAKATAO mainly focus on being a human which talks about having a good
attitude and pleasing character that each of us should possess. Why do you think it
would be hard being a human? For me because of how we grow and being nurtured.
Some of us are just lucky to have healthy environment in their childhoods and some of
us are unfortunate enough to be on wrath of other persons. Being human is being able
to care on someone’s feeling because you always try to put yourself in the shoe of
others.

All of us can be a person but not all of us can be humans. Many of us know how
to give even the smallest way of kindest and there are also others who can be the worst
to commit such crimes to others. Maybe they are blinded by hatreds and anger which
made them to do things that even them couldn’t imagine. We can never tell anyone and
judge them based on what we hear from others and not knowing their side of the story.
Every time when I watched videos that shows simple act of kindness to others always
give me hope that there is still humanity even though many are proving to be against
humanity.

On the other hand, the reason we need to know the deep meaning of this
quotation because it helps us realize why being a human is vital and shouldn’t be taken
lightly. This helps us to know and remember to treat everyone as a human being and
not just a person itself. But what if you treat someone as a person compared to treating
someone as a human?

When you treat someone as a person, you recognize that he or she is another
individual, different from yourself, who has his/her own hopes and disappointments.
They have their own fears, strengths and weaknesses that may be identical, similar, or
completely different from yourself. When you treat someone as a person, you treat them
as a man, woman, or anything in between depending on the individual person. You
respect that person. You understand that this person has a story to tell, and you are
curious to learn more about it without judgment.

If you treat someone as a human, you acknowledge the fact that you are not
different from them. Paradoxically you treat them as an individual and as an indifferent
member of a pre-defined group. When you treat someone as a person, you are fair and
you try to give them what they deserve, whether it be good or bad. But when you treat
someone as a human you realize that sometimes we all need something that we don’t
deserve. I love the final words from the Dark Knight because they signify exactly this
very idea (“He’s not the hero we deserve, but the one we need”).

Treating someone as a human being instead of a person is often irrational,

selfless, and detrimental to our own good. It means giving someone a chance that they
never earned, forgiveness that they don’t deserve, or power that they can’t handle.

As we communicate with people, we should limit those inappropriate

manners which we are showing when we are interacting with them. This
quotation conducting us to determine what is the discrepancy by which having
a faith, strong personality that we should cherish, and being true to ourselves even
though we encounter a lot of challenges or influence of environment nor
technology if you won’t be carry away and be affected because you already proved to
yourself with freedom where and what is wrong and right.

On the contrary, it is quite ironic to easily spot people that doing bad stuffs than
spreading kindness to the world. As a student what we can do is to focus on practicing
and teaching ourselves to be kind because I believe everything should start to yourself.
Before you can motivate and persuade others to even simplest kindness, you need to
know that what you practice to yourself is the mirror that reflects to others. Be a role
model to others and be the source of light. Instead of being a problem be the solution. I
know that being kind cannot be applied overnight. It takes patience and courage to be
taught to yourself the way of every human and not as a person.

To put on account everything that had been stated above, MADALING MAGING
TAO, because we are born of it. It simply just riding a car at back seat. However,
MAHIRAP MAGPAKATAO, for the reason that many factors affect how each of us react
like the pain, anger, temptation and situations that broke us. It is like we are the one
driving the car. We need to be careful; we make sure you are not hitting anyone and
causing any harm to others.

Being just a person is not bad but acting like a human is way better. Yes, it might
be difficult, but it is not impossible. Start on just small gestures of kindness everyday to
anyone and it will become your hobby in the future to act as a human and would
motivate someone or everyone to be like you.