Jose Rizal is a man of many achievements.

We can all draw inspiration from Jose Rizal in everything

we do. He motivates us to work hard and be diligent, which is something that most of us lack.

I find it amazing that Rizal managed to accomplish so much while living in exile and didn't object
to being sent to Dapitan to live like a prisoner. In the sense that he established a cooperative even while
in exile, he has taught the underprivileged people of Mindanao how to band together for trade in order
to become independent, free themselves from the Chinese, and become less exploited. Jose Rizal
continued to serve his country while many others would panic, despair, or lose hope for any success in
their lives as a result of being exiled. This is what set Jose Rizal apart from the others and made him a
national hero. He was a man who took real action. He never put himself before his countrymen.

I wish right now that the tree he planted could somehow magically bring Rizal to our time, so I
could thank him for all that he did for us.

Rizal genuinely cared about his countrymen, was a patriot, and was nationalistic because he never
wanted to see his fellow Filipinos oppressed or exploited.

I'd love to visit Dapitan to get a sense of how our hero endured exile there. We commemorated
Rizal's 143rd birthday on June 19 of last year. For the typical Filipino, that is equivalent to two lifetimes.
But this is not really the case when one considers the baluno tree he nurtured, which continues to grow
today as our living link to him, as well as the issues he cared about and which still present challenges to
us today: inequality, poverty, health, and education. To learn more about our hero would be such an
honor.