Do You Remember?

In a few days, we will be commemorating the 22nd death anniversary of Ninoy Aquino. For present-day teenagers, he will just be a figure on their History textbooks, a face on the 500 peso bill, a name of an airport.

Most young people now (20 years old and below) are more concerned with what brand cellphone they are using, what brand clothes they are parading around in. Politics is too dirty for them. Philosophy is too abstract for such young untutored minds.

But if teenagers don't start remembering fallen heroes trapped in history textbooks soon, kailan pa?

I love History. I am fascinated with it. Bakit? Because I look beyond the dates. I had a 65-year old history teacher in high school and she told me that dates are almost meaningless. Huh? Did I just hear that from a history teacher?! "Yup," she said, "what is more important is remembering the lessons learned and not duplicating the same event/mistakes in the present time. " Or something to that effect, basta she made it sound more profound and eloquent.

There was a time when she gave out an exam with 4 essay questions (unheard-of, in high school history at the time!). That signalled my romance with history and with writing for that matter. Suffice to say I was exempted from taking the final periodic test in History hehe :)

Do we need better History teachers to teach our young? And heck, to teach us all? Do we need to have a dictator all over again for us to remember the heroes who have fallen, blood that has been shed, the mistakes we made in history?