Rainbows of This World

When was the last time you’ve seen a rainbow? Can you still recall it? The question is a bit funny but I’m serious about asking it. Why am I asking this? Because this question (about a rainbow) simply reminds me of hopes, inspirations, strengths, motivations, challenges, and changes.

It was last October 23, 2011 (Sunday) when I was heading my way to Manila Zoo for U! Happy Events’ “Care for Rare”, which was sponsored by Ate Malou. It was a fine morning when suddenly, rain poured. The sudden rainfall gave me a dilemma because I haven’t brought my umbrella and I wasn’t expecting the day to be a bit rainy. But to my ease, the rain just lasted for minutes and as the FX approaches the Quezon City Memorial Circle, a rainbow catches my attention. It appeared gloriously in the sky as if it was telling me that my problem is over and I don’t need to worry much for everything will be alright.

The feeling was quite funny because as far as I can remember, the last time I saw a rainbow was when I’m still in my early age. It was the age of my triumph as a child where the world is not really hard to live in and that life is just a matter of laughs and cries for simple things that were not granted. It was also those years when my father used to point at the rainbow telling me the word “rainbow”, but the only problem was that I can barely see it with my own naked eyes due to its nearly invisible state. It was a fun, yet melodramatic moment for me to reminisce. Then, my simple moments with my early years were turned into thoughts of reality regarding the significance of a rainbow in our lives.

Rainbows are reminders that every obstacle will end in time and that the future will [still] shine as bright as before. That life has to go on and we shouldn’t be afraid of its twists and turns for it is meant for us to become smarter, stronger, and sharper. Rainbows are our comfort-givers and our deliverers of hope. They can simply be likened to people we admire, people we aspire, and people we look up to, whom we met along the way. They are the people who made a difference in our lives.

Rainbows are like the unsung heroes of yesterday, who molded our pasts and gave valuable meanings to the world that we are currently enjoying; they are like extraordinary men and women of Asia, whom we know as the great Ramon Magsaysay Awardees; they are like the new breed of public servants of “Kaya Natin! A Movement for Ethical Leadership and Good Governance”, whom we know as champions of good governance; they are like the passionate young leaders, whom I met during the “Youth Leaders for Knowledge and Development” program of World Bank and Ateneo School of Government; they are like the volunteers and founders of Gawad Kalinga, U! Happy Events and other NGO’s, who sincerely and wholeheartedly serve this nation; they are like our teachers and mentors, who tirelessly and continuously give their very best just to make sure that we’ll pursue the right track towards greatness; they are like the ordinary citizens of this country, who pursue excellence, goodwill, and honesty in order for this nation to prosper; and most especially, they are like our parents, whom we got our values and characters.   

All of them are not just ordinary individuals. They are people, who show what humanity is all about. They are rainbows of this world. When calamities arise and problems soar, they serve to be our symbol of hopes and our primary source of strengths. They are the first to stand up and the last to give up. They are the reason of our progress and the answer to our sufferings. And as the day comes to an end, we are sure that there’s a beautiful tomorrow still waiting for us. And as long as there are still rainbows emerging in our lives, we know that our children still have a future to look up to. They sure have everything that we could ask for. But, there’s still missing beyond their pursuit towards greatness – us! We are the missing piece and we hold the key to help them continue what they’ve started.

We should strive to be an inspiration to other people as much as how they’ve strived to inspire us. They need us as much as we needed them. And yes, we deserve to be saved but, we are also meant to save other people as well. All that’s left now is our choice – the choice to become part of their growing ranks, to be change-makers of our own, to be heroes to people in need, to be the source of strength to the weak, and to be the rainbow of this country. It is up to us to decide whether we only want to witness change or we extremely want to become part of change. It is time to decide now! Let’s act responsibly! Let’s all become rainbows in this world and become deliverers of hopes, inspirations, strengths, motivations, challenges, and changes!