Jose Rizal: a hero beyond measures.

A hero indeed worthy of respect, well who isn’t? Jose Rizal is known all over the country, he is famous for being the “national hero” but at some point, in certain occasions, it stops in that thought, the national hero. Many people know about him having that title yet when asked how did he become one, very few could answer back it with supporting details. It is just the repeated statement which says “he died for our country, for us” but aren’t the other heroes also like that? offered their life for our country, for us? Let me tell you, there is more to it than meets the eye.

Along the discourse of this subject, I get to know Rizal deeply by learning his life and works. My PI10 journey has been fun. It taught me lots of things about Rizal, himself. More importantly, it taught me to be a critical and radical thinker not just during class but also when assessing any concepts or problems that I encounter.

The statements listed below are the things I discerned during this four-months lecture which made me conclude that Jose Rizal is a hero.

Rizal is a polymath. But even if he is one, he didn’t use his knowledge to cause chaos or hurt anyone instead he utilized its full capacity to help and fight for the country. He is a genius that was unbothered by the mind.

He lived a simple life. Unlike any of us, he dreamed not to have a luxurious life but that of a simple one.

His love for the country is admirable. This is the characteristic that each one of us should embody. We should not just focus and love ourselves and the people surrounding us but also our country, the place where we were born and thrived onto.

He implied the essence of education. Education is a really important possession one can have as it will help us broaden our minds. It’ll grant us power so that we will not be enslaved by the wrong thoughts or actions done in the society. This will serve as our sword and armor against the indecorous measures in the world. Its value is considered as the stepping stone towards my success and also the country’s.

Rizal is not a hero because he is born to be, he made it happen. His efforts and sufferings that are deemed worthy of being called as one brought him that title.

He is a beacon of hope. You could be one too. I could be one too. Any one could be. This is the realization that was left engraved in my mind upon studying this course. Everyone has a light within themselves. A light that has the ability to touch one’s life. A light that could be used to inspire and motivate. A light that could serve as a guidance of other people towards their goal. A light that could free someone from the darkness that they were enclosed on. A light that still shines and do not let the gloom prevailed and consumes life. Heroes are ordinary people who make themselves extraordinary.