yellow ribbons for cory

it was ofw reyna elena‘s great idea, launched early thursday afternoon sa barrio siete of which s/he is la kapitana — the call to bloggers to “tie a yellow ribbon for cory aquino,” sending her a message of love from a grateful people.    kumbaga, yoohoo cory, you’re on our minds, you’re in our hearts…

someone may have tipped the binays off, or naunahan lang sila ni reynz, but last night, according to the news, the mayor’s people had started tying yellow ribbons around the makati medical center and along major thoroughfares, promising to do the same citywide.

the first time we tied a yellow ribbon to our car’s antenna was back in ’83, in the wake of ninoy’s assassination.   i was working for the ministry of human settlements’ sesame street project, based in the university of life (now ultra).    of course hindi pinapasok ng guards ang kotse kasi may yellow ribbon.    rather than remove it i walked in na lang.   a month later i quit.

i was defiant then, i am just so sad now.   my heart goes out to cory, and her children, who are suffering great pain in what may be cory’s final days.   and yet, true to our culture — or is it a universal thing — we are not allowed to say she’s dying, we’re not allowed to say goodbye, we’re only allowed to pray, pray for her recovery, pray for a miracle.

the idea is not to speak of death because according to the old folks to do so is to attract it or to bring it on, which is a superstitious notion really, along with crossing fingers and knocking on wood to ward off bad luck.   but again who knows , ‘no?

anyway, gil grissom’s line in csi keeps running ’round my head :   “i wouldn’tmind dying of cancer, at least i get to say goodbye.”

this is not to say that i don’t believe in miracles, but the kind of  miracle we’re praying for, which would find cory suddenly getting better, recovering, has very slim chances of happening, no matter how hard we pray.   and then, again, yeah, malay natin, baka nga magmilagro ang langit, so okay i’m leaving that door open while praying praying praying that the suffering ends, one way or another.

now if what’s keeping her here lang pala, without hope of recovery, are the prayers and the holy masses that we’ve been storming heaven with, well, then, i say it’s time to let her go.   if we really love her, we’ll let her go.   let heaven take her.

so long, cory.   love you, cory.   salamat, cory.

Comments

  1. angela

    ederic@cyberspace just chatted me up about the false alarm of cory’s death that started by text and spread through twitter. ederic must have thought that i knew something, thus my post. my reaction was, oh no! which tells me how two-minded i am. i want her suffering to end but i don’t want her to go :-(

    July 24, 2009 at 5:11 pm
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  10. jun

    Dear Cory,

    I would like to dedicate to you this editorial that was published in Malaya when Ninoy was shot dead in 1983.

    “Indeed, Ninoy Aquino is not dead, he can never die. He continue to be very much alive in all of us who are decided to seek and live th truth in the undying spirit of love for people and country.”

    Just like Ninoy, you will never die. You will always be in the hearts of men and women who love truth, freedom and justice.

    1986. Never been so proud of being a Pinoy. Thank you for that one shining moment.

    July 26, 2009 at 10:32 am
    Reply
  11. Rob Angeles

    Sad it may be, but we all need to accept that things like this come. She fought a good fight when democracy was restored in our country. I think to tie a yellow ribbon is not just for the sake of doing the gesture, it is for us to tell ourselves to do a Cory Aquino in our own little way. We may not become Presidents of high-ranking gov’t officials, but we can follow her footsteps.

    By doing this, I believe that we can tell Cory “Don’t worry Madam President, we will continue fighting..”.

    July 28, 2009 at 2:16 am
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  14. Kurog

    Not being negative here but prayers won’t make her well… No matter how much healing masses will be held for her, it won’t work!

    Lalo na yang mga healing masses na started by politicians? Lalo lang sasama ang kalagayan ni Mrs. Aquino… Kasi, pakitang tao lang yang mga healing masses na yan eh… nagpapabango lang ng pangalan ang mga pulitikong yan… Kung gusto nilang gumaling si Mrs. Aquino, they should go to their rooms, turn down the lights, and pray silently…

    Even you guys, na nagpopost ng yellow ribbons sa blogs nila, that won’t work… Say silent prayers for her… No offense to anyone but as the bible says, prayers made in public won’t be answered…

    July 31, 2009 at 11:12 am
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