A RECONSTRUCTED PORTRAIT OF JUAN DE LA CRUZ

By Roger Don S.J. Cerda

How do we describe today's Filipino? What are the qualities or physical attributes that make us stand out
among all the races in the world? What distinguishing marks do we have? Is it our nose that is as big and
wide as the gorilla's? Is it our fair skin? Is it our round brown eyes? Is it our moderate height? Is it our
unique black hair? Is it our proficiency in the Filipino language? Is it our conservative way of dressing or
the barely naked one? Is it because we live in the 7,107 islands of the Philippines whether it's low tide or
high tide? Is it because we eat street food like fish ball, squid ball, and chicken feet? Or none of the
above?

Even before the intrusion of the Spaniards, the Americans, and the Japanese, we Filipinos already have
atypical and unexplainable personalities that set us apart from other races. Aside from our physical
attributes, we unveil an individuality that depicts a Filipino today. But honestly, we show a lot of ironies
and paradoxes in our lifestyles that at times, we, ourselves, are confused about our true identity, as if we
do not know who we truly are.

Because of rapid technological advancement and the unstable conditions of our lives, we have evolved
making ourselves famous in one way or another -- good or bad.

At this juncture, I may say that we typify the following traits:

First, We Filipinos have a Remarkable Sense of Humor. [inline capitalized words are in the original.]
Where in this world (aside from the mental hospital), do we see people laughing for no reason at all?
Where do you see people smiling even in the most disheartening situation? Where do we see people
making fun of their own mistakes? Where do we see people discussing trivia at the height of a clear and
present danger?

When I saw the television footage of typhoon Reming in Bicol, I felt sad for the people who lost their
houses and other important properties. However, I felt slightly appeased when those typhoon victims
smiled and waved as if nothing cataclysmic happened when they saw the lights of roving cameras. Well,
it's only in the Philippines where people do not take serious matters seriously.

I remember the president of the Philippine Normal University when he narrated his childhood
experience with his English teacher during my week-long seminar in English Language Teaching and
Testing in April of 2007. His teacher brought apples, oranges, and mangoes to make their lesson on
nouns understandable and memorable, and so the teacher started teaching..."This is an apple and this is
a noun, use nouns in a sentence?" His classmate seated at the back raised his hand to answer, soothe
[typo?] teacher called him and said, "Ok, use nouns in a sentence."His classmate stood straight and
confidently said, Ï want to eat those nouns." And everyone burst into laughter. I realized that laughter is
indeed the best medicine because you feel good every time someone makes you titter.
Still others, because of technological advancement, are contented to express their whimsical hilarity
through through text messaging. A friend of mine sent the following messages: [Three inane text
messages follow labelled Message 1, Message 3, and Message 5. Some are erroneous but that isn't the
author's fault so I'll skip these.].

We Filipinos never run out of jokes. We are very resourceful in creating shaggy dog stories despite the
burden we carry on our shoulders and the preoccupations that we have. We always find time to make
other people chuckle, as the saying goes, "The best way to cheer yourself up is to cheer other people
up." It's ironic because we appreciate and desire funny and sometimes ribald text messages than the
inspirational and religious ones. Well, it's only in the Philippines.

Second, we Filipinos Have Incomparable Sense of Hospitality. We always offer the best we have to our
visitors without any reservation. Even with foreigners, when they visit the Philippines for a vacation, we
still speak their language to accomodate them because we regard them so much; on the contrary, when
we go to a foreign land as tourists, they do not speak our language, so, we do not have a choice but to
speak their language to facilitate effective communication. We do not always find this incredible trait
from other people herein the Philippines.

Third, We Filipinos are very Creative and Inventive most especially during the most unthinkable situation.

Nobody can deny that we are ingenious especially when the situation calls for it.

Whenever Metro Manila is flooded, people make small wooden bridges for the stranded pedestrians to
cross the flooded part of the street so as not to get wet. In exchange, the "owners" of the wooden
bridges ask for "voluntary contribution." Instant money, isn't it? It's only in the Philippines.

In the provinces, when there is a big flood, they take it to their advantage to go up on the roofs of their
houses to fish tilapia for their dinner. Others would row boats filled with the things they would like to
sell to other flood victims. It's only in the Philippines.

These do not imply, however, that we are so puerile; it only shows that we have the knack for turning
something bad into something good for we believe that there is light in total darkness.

Our creativity is revealed when we are able to generate something from seemingly useless things. Some
Filipinos became popular because they were able to make an artwork, a bag, or an apparel from the
disposables and sold them for thousands of pesos. It proves that there is money in garbage for people
who have the right mental attitude.

Fourth, we Filipinos are Great Violators. In Metro Manila, it's typical to see big warning signs saying,
"Walang Tawiran, Nakamamatay." But still, we don't follow the city ordinance even though there is an
overpass or underpass nearby for safe street crossing. Maybe we are either tired of going up and down
or we are just too lazy that we would rather take the risk of and sometimes enjoy, crossing the highway.

In the same way, we throw our garbage in places where there are signs: "Bawal Magtapon ng Basura
Dito." The same is true with "Bawal Umihi Dito" for we are like dogs urinating anywhere we please. We
are repulsive at times for we spit almost anywhere. We even abuse ourselves by eating foods that are
forbidden by the doctors for we imbibe the idea: "Life is short, so make the most of it." We also
patronize pirated cassette discs in Quiapo and Greenhills for practical reasons. It is ironic that we do
uncivilized things for we are civilized people. As Manuel L. Quezon said, "Our greatest fear is not that of
doing wrong, but that of being caught doing wrong." That's why we always get in trouble. Walang
ganyan sa States. It's only in the Philippines.

Fifth, We Filipinos are Professional Crammers. In the antediluvian story of Juan Tamad, he waited for the
guava fruit to fall down from the tree to his mouth. There was also an instance when he bought crabs
and asked them to go home on their own. Since then, Juan has been used to name an idle Filipino.

Based on my personal experience both as high school and college literature teacher, I notice that when I
give a requirement a month or so before the deadline, students do not mind at all. They procrastinate.
They do it a day or two before the deadline. Well that's the type of students that we have today, whether
we admit it or not.

Sixth, We Filipinos are so Superficial. When a person is confronted with the question, "how do you
define beauty?" Common answer is "beauty is in the eye of the beholder"or "beauty is not seen by the
eyes, it is felt by the heart"for the most imporant things in life are then things that we do not see. Bravo!
I'm impressed!

We always underscore that the true beauty of a person is what 's inside, for the physical beauty fades
but virtue lasts. Am I right or left? So why is it that we are still so superficial? When we ask: "Who would
you choose: a beautiful but dull girl or an intelligent but ugly girl?" We will certainly take the first option
because we believe that the intellectual inferiority of a person can still be improved, isn't it? Although
the physical look of a person can be enhanced nowadays, through modern technology and with the help
fo Dr. Vicky Bello and Dr. Manny Calayan, we would still opt for natural beauty. Do you honestly want to
be with someone who looks like Bakekang for the rest of your life? Who could endure to be with
someone who looks like a living monster?

There are very few men who would subscribe to the idea of Andrew E's song, "Humanap Ka ng Panget"
to be certain that they would not be left by their partners. We really want someone whom we can
display in public, someone who exudes an angelic face with a flawless body. On the contrary, most
women would subscribe to DJ Alvaro's song: "Ang Tipo KOng Lalake ay Maginoo Pero Medyo Bastos"
someone decent, but passionate and sexually aggressive.

Seventh, We Filipinos are so Judgmental. We constantly see the flaws in other people whether we
accept it or not. It becomes automatic that we criticize them without examining ourselves first. When
we see a good-looking foreigner with a not so good-looking Pinay, we always conclude that foreigners
are fond of Pinays who look like "kasambahay" (housemaid)...that they are continuously searching for
Pinays with exotic beauty not present in other Asians. No wonder because Pinay is an "endangered
species!" Well it's only in the Philippines.
Eight, We Filipinos do not Provide an Exact Answer. We may not be sensitive about it, but when
someone inquires, we do not give a precise answer. For example, if someone asks:

"Kumain ka na ba?" we usually say "busog pa ako" instead of saying oo or hindi;

"Anong oras na?" we usually say, "maaga pa!" instead of giving the exact time;

"San ka na?" we usually say, "malapit na" instead of saying our exact location.

or "Maganda ba GF nya?" or "Guwapo ba BF nya?" we usually say "mabait" or "okay naman" instead of
telling the truth because we do not want to offend anyone.

This manner has become part of our consciousness. Well, it's only in the Philippines.

Ninth, We Filipinos have a Strong Sense of Volunteerism." Have you celebrated your birthday and you
came across attendees or visitors that you are not personally acquainted with or never have met before?
Have you felt alienated while asking yourself, ïs this my birthday?" Have you formed any suspicion
wondering where those people are coming from?

If your answer is yes, the [typo] you should not wonder why. It's because we Filipinos have as [typo]
strong sense of "volunteerism," We attend birthdays, weddings, town fiestas, baptisms, anniversaries,
victory parties, and the likes, even though we are not invited at all. Well, that's Filipino Courage! So
when someone congratulates you on your wedding with matching embrace even to the groom instead of
just holding hands, you know that they are "volunteers" which make your budget collapse.

However, even though we have unexpected visitors, it is our hospitality that prevails to accomodate
them. Just think that you are helping our less fortunate brothers and sisters! (Just kidding!) So the next
time you celebrate an important decision, remember what the Boy Scouts say, "prepared".

Tenth, We Filipinos are so Complaining. I just noticed that we become so cranky. We have not started
doing what is expected of us and we are already dissenting. We often try to bargain and meet halfway.
We are disinclined to carry on an arduous task because we want everything spic and span.

We seldom appreciate the good intention of our superiors or elders. I personally experience this is
[typo] school when I give a requirement or project to my students. Even in government, we are known
worldwide for overthrowing our President through mass rallies or demonstrations. We create our own
policy, Military officers say, "Obey first before you complain." We say, "Complain first before you obey."

Eleventh, We Filipinos are so Pretentious. Where there is a conflagration, for example, we show our
sense of "bayanihan" by helping our neighbors put out the fire, but in reality, we take this as an
opportunity to rob them. We make it appear that we are saving their properties, but we are actually
stealing them. We become so insensitive that we don't bother what our neighbors go through during
that depressing incident. So sad...Walang ganyan sa States. It's only in the Philippines.

Twelfth, we Filipinos are so Resilient. We have endured all the tragedies in life from Herculean typhoons
such as Milenyo, Ondoy, and Pepeng to civil war, crimes, hunger, scarcity of rice, mounting prices of
commodities, corruption,climate change, global warming, name it, we all have it, but have surpassed
them all. We are true Survivors. Wherever we go, whatever the situation, it is never excessively alarming
or disorienting. We can always adapt to the fast-changing environment to make the difference. Hurray!