Repetition is done for others to learn. Fast learners should accept this as reaching out to others instead of thinking that they are at a loss due to the lack of progress in the next things to learn; after all, they can move forward while others still need repetition. Even if there is overlapping, the important thing is that it is not intentional. Also, it is written, “Teach and counsel (magturo at magpaalalahanan) each other with all the wisdom He gives.”
In Colossians 3:16, thanksgiving to Him is also taught.
It is good that our discs are no longer around; otherwise, merong excuse (“para ka namang sirang plaka, paulit-ulit”) kung makiki-hip hop kay Lady Diane (1991). When a thing is learned, there is retention in the mind, so if nothing stays in the brain, the need for repetition comes into play. Teaching is the process and learning is the product, according to psychologists, and it was repeated by Dr. Teresita Malabuyo (pray for her recovery) in general psychology and educational psychology classes that I attended in the late 1990s.
Now, I come to what I should value in this space by repeating what has already been said about hope (pag-asa):
Jayeel Serrano Cornelio (2022): “Hopeful about the future, we convince each other that our problems will end if we just work hard enough. Without us realizing it, this discourse valorizes suffering. Therein lies, I believe, the internal contradiction of hope as we know it. In this discourse, Filipinos must endure their circumstances in the hope that tomorrow our dreams will be fulfilled. Deployed in this manner, hope lays the burden for progress on individuals. But conveniently, it deflects responsibility away from the state over its misplaced priorities, corruption, and inefficiency.”
Renato “Rene” Mendoza Alviar (2022): “(M)ahirap iasa sa mga mahihirap nating kababayan ang tamang pagkilatis sa mga gustong mamuno. Masyado na silang pinahirapan ng sitwasyon, bukod pa sa nilinlang ng mga mapagsamantala. Kailangan natin silang tulungan sa aktibong partisipasyon sa pagdedesisyon sa paraang kadama-dama o nararanasan. Inclusive growth ang maitutulong natin sa kanila. Mahirap ipaintindi sa kanila ang inclusive goal/s. Kailangang magpanabay ang pagtulong sa kanilang kabuhayan at paglinang sa kanilang kaalaman o sapat na edukasyon at sapat na panlipunang paglilingkod. Hindi rin pwedeng isisi sa mga mahihirap ang maling pagpili ng mga iboboto dahil sumusunod lang naman sila sa agos. Gaya nga ng nabanggit na, sila man din ay may sinusunod na prayoridad katulad ng paghahanap ng makakain sa maghapon, pamasahe bukas makalawa ng mga naghahanap ng trabaho, gastusing medikal at pang-edukasyon ng mga anak, pati na ang gastos sa bahay kung meron mang bahay o inuupahan. Maraming matututunan ang ultimate decision makers sa mga mahihirap nating botante. Kailangang makihalubilo sa kanila, makialam sa kanilang hinaing. Magdahan-dahan tayo sa maling pagturing sa kanila (pinakahuli’y ‘bobotante’) dahil pangunahing inaasahan nila ang mapalaya sila sa kahirapan na tungkulin ng Estado sa kanila, constitutionally and morally speaking …Matuto nawa ang mga nakaluluwag sa buhay sa mga aral ng kalagayan ng mahihirap nating kababayan na boboto na naman at muling aasa na maiaahon sila sa kahirapan. At para naman sa mga gustong mapalaya sa kahirapan, bigyan nawa nila ng panahon ang kaalaman at karunungan na maaaring mangahulugang maghanap ng tamang mapagtatanungan o mga eksperto. Isa na rito ang pagbibigay ng panahon na malaman kung sino talaga ang may alam sa ekonomiya at subok na sa tapat na paglilingkod.”
Diwa Contreras Guinigundo (2024): “Hope may as well be driven by our spirituality, that as Jeremiah 29:11 clarifies, the Lord’s plan is for our ‘welfare and not for evil,’ to give us ‘a future and a hope.’ …Being always hopeful should not lead us to refrain from questioning the more fundamental issues of poverty and income inequality in a period of perceived growth and prosperity. Being always hopeful does not negate the ability to manage expectations; instead, we should be motivated to persevere because there is something to hope for.”
DC Alviar
Professor DC Alviar serves as a member of the steering committee of the Philippine International Studies Organization (PHISO). He was part of National University’s community extension project that imparted the five disciplines of a learning organization (Senge, 1990) to communities in a local government unit. He writes and edits local reports for Mega Scene. He graduated with a master’s degree in development communication from the University of the Philippines Open University in Los Baños. He recently defended a dissertation proposal for his doctorate degree in communication at the same graduate school under a Philippine government scholarship grant. He was editor-in-chief of his high school paper Ang Ugat and the Adamson News.
