BANCE , AIRA GAYLE A.

QUESTION : NOW THAT YOU ARE MORE FAMILIAR WITH RIZAL'S LIFE AND WORKS,

WHAT HAVE YOU/CAN YOU LEARN FROM HIM?

What Rizal Had Taught Me

One of the most respected figures in Philippine history is Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso

Realonda, was born on June 19, 1861 in Calamba, Laguna. His parents are Francisco Mercado and

Teodora Alonso. His political literature , which encouraged the revolt and ultimately led to his killing by

the Spanish invaders, made him a versatile thinker and activist in politics who is most known for his

political literature. As a result of his desire to cure his mother and her deteriorating vision, Rizal became

interested in ophthalmology. Many decades had passed , long lists of national historic events had

happened but still the works and the heroic ways of Rizal was not forgotten. Lots of learnings to apply

and reflect on our daily lives .

Being the national hero of the Philippines, Rizal has come to represent the country's struggle for

freedom. In the Philippines, December 30 is observed as holiday in remembrance of Rizal died on that

day in 1896. As deemed the National Hero of the Phil, Rizal contributed many things including his

famous literature Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo that are distributed in which help uplift and

ignite his fellow Filipinos to aim for their freedom from the Spanish Government .

The two well-known works by Dr. Jose Rizal, our national hero, Noli me tangere and El

filibusterismo, are similar and dissimilar in few aspects. The main similarity between the two famous
literature is the author, Rizal. They are similar in that they both discuss how Filipinos were mistreated by

Spaniards, how the church abused its position of authority, and how Filipinos were treated unfairly.

Strong anti-clerical and even anti-Catholic sentiment is present in both Noli and El Fili.

I had learned so many valuable lessons throughout the discussions held. One is that education is

very important. He represents the value of education in the world. He thought that only education could

free his people from ignorance and servitude. He thought that only education could free his people from

ignorance and servitude. He spent the most of his time studying. Rizal studied at the Ateneo, a private

high school, and then to the University of St. Thomas in Manila. He did his post graduate work at the

University of Madrid in 1882. For the next five years, he wandered through Europe discussing politics

wherever he went. Rizal's efforts were not in vain since they gave our countrymen the confidence and

encouragement to stand up for themselves and fight for the freedom they long wanted . Especially in

today’s world in which it is very competitive and having a degree, finishing your studies could make a lot

of difference. It wouldn’t hurt anyone to have a little bit more knowledge about the world and the things

happening around us. Everyone of us need education , not just for ourselves but also in order to help in

one way or another.

The importance and having your family as your priority is another lesson that I have learned . As

Rizal had shown this as he older and traveled overseas without his family, he kept in touch with them by

writing letters to his parents, brothers, and sisters. And the most important is when Rizal pursued

ophthalmology at the Universities of Heidelberg and Paris because he was determined to reverse his

mother's deteriorating eyesight. In Hong Kong in 1892, Dr. Rizal successfully removed a cataract from

his mother's left eye. However, in 1894, endophthalmitis developed in the right eye, which had undergone

surgery while he was living in exile in Dapitan. His mother served as his initial educator, teaching him
how to read and, as a result, how to value reading as a means of education and meaningful leisure.

Furthermore, Dona Teodora taught Rizal to never waste a single moment of life, teaching him to view

time as the most priceless gift. A family that no matter happens will be there for you to support and by

your side even the whole world is against you. Misunderstandings can happen an inevitable , but at the

end of the day your family are the ones will be there cheering you on in life. Making them as inspiration

and your reason to fight and reach for success in life.

His love for our country, Phillippines and his concern to his countrymen was undeniably deep

that he was targeted and killed because of it . At a very young age , Rizal had seen the inequality and

injustice that the Filipinos have endured and suffered from. This made Rizal persevere to gain the

freedom our country should have during those time. Alongside with Bonifacio and many more heroes

during the Spanish colonization that sacrificed their own life to achieved the goal. It is a reminder for me

to never forget where you came from . No matter how high or great you had achieved, never turn a blind

eye if your so called home needed help. At today’s beauty standard , some of the younger generation are

ashamed or don’t appreciate the natural features of a Filipino like the having a flat nose “pango” or

having a dark complexion so called “morena”. We need to embrace and be proud of our features, this is

part of our identity and history. There is nothing wrong in wanting to enhance ourselves to make us more

confident, but let us not also forget that this is who we are and it is beautiful . Another thing in loving our

country is that , patronizing our own products . We may look for other alternatives from other countries

but we should look to the ones that we offer, it can also help create and rise the employment rate in our

country. The bravery of Rizal is one to be admired. Even though he knew exactly the consequences of his

doings and the danger him and his family might face. It didn’t stop him to pursue what he envision the

country would become . He choses to look after the welfare of others . Despite what we may think, there

are actual people who make the same error of placing oneself before others. For instance, some of our
society's leaders place a higher value on power than on passion, and this is the only factor causing

corruption. It exists as a result of people choosing to put their needs before those of others.

Rizal used his knowledge and passion in writing as a weapon to fight for equality instead of using

violence that might result numerous number of deaths of his fellow Filipinos . He rose up against the

Spaniards without resorting to violence unlike Bonifacio, rather by educating and guiding the people

about the injustices that were occurring and how to deal with them. In fact it was Rizal who inspired

Bonifacio by having read the Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo converted the power of these into a

revolution against the Spain. It was Rizal who through this two masterpiece that ignited the fire and

longing of freedom by his fellow Filipinos. Because of his writing prowess, he was able to persuade

everyone to pursue justice and overthrow an empire. Words fly around and stir up emotions in every man.

Like the proverbial saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. It had the potential to be

both a double-edged blade It was him that touched the heart and make them dream for our countrymen to

have freedom and equal right against the Spanish government . I am still believing in the power of a pen

and intelligence. Even how small or big a problem is, we need to evaluate it properly . think critically and

thoroughly which solution is more effective and also has a lesser negative effect to us and the people

involve. The importance of reaching a peaceful resolution is also underlined. People who value peace will

always be seen as noble and honorable men. Conflicts are never settled through violence; instead, they are

resolved in peaceful ways.

The famous phrase of Jose Rizal, "The Youth is the Hope of Our Future," still resonates with

people in our century. This little statement would quickly be recognized by the majority of listeners. That

phrase gave a lot of people something to look forward to .Hope that can be a source of strength in doing

something, no matter how difficult life can be , as long you have hope and you work hard it is possible. In
my darkest day. We need something to hold on to, as long as the spark of hope does not disappear. The

values that Rizal shown during his lifetime is something that many of us exhibit, we need to work on.

Nobody is perfect, but at least we should try and reflect on ourselves. I didn’t need to exceed on that he

has done. I should learn on his experience , I might need to apply it to our daily lives. Everything happens

for a reason, it is up to me on how will I handle things as I learn from others .

Bibliography

• T. Gomez. (n.d.). Life of Jose Rizal. Retrieved from https://j-isc.org/life-of-jose-rizal

• (42), markaparre, (-2)(1), luckypower, (42), newbieresteemday, & (50), resteemable.

(n.d.). The controversy of Philippines National Hero (dr. Jose Rizal) - the story. Steemit.

Retrieved March 6, 2023, from https://www.steemit.com/literaturang-

filipino/@markaparre/the-controversy-of-philippines-national-hero-dr-jose-rizal-the-story