31/08/2026
๐๐๐๐ง๐จ๐ฅ๐ | ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ก ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐๐๐ก ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ง๐๐ : ๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ฆ ๐ช๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ง๐๐ก๐
โ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ข ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฐ ๐ข ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฐ?โ
Kind. Courageous. Morally Upright. Self-sacrificing. Protector. Heroes are all of theseโat very least when people are asked to define a hero. Across history books, novels, songs, films, and even games, heroes are immortalized as individuals who rise against fate to answer humanityโs call. They are the symbolic representation of altruism, sacrifice, freedom, and love for humanity.
The Philippines is no stranger to this concept. We have historical figures like Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal, Melchora Aquino, and other honorable figures whose names have been carved into history for resisting tyranny from external forces and making the ultimate sacrifice to deliver freedom to Filipinos. We also have brave mythical warriors from folklore who protected their people with gifts bestowed by the heavens, as fated heroes who saved humankind.
For generations to come, theyโll be revered for their love of their people and land.
Upon hearing their stories, one canโt help but marvel at the nobility of those who step forward to become a guiding light when everything is falling apart and impending doom looms. A profound feeling of inspiration blooms inside us when we hear ordinary people rise above fear and circumstance to do something extraordinary. It encourages us to believe that one person can make a difference, and this person could be anyone; it could even be ourselves.
So, a question appears. If the characteristics mentioned above are what make a hero, then arenโt we all heroes in some way?
In a sense, we are, but it comes with a price.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ต ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฎ ๐ก๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ผ
The nuances of heroism have evolved alongside the nationโs struggle; each generation has its own heroes to answer the cries of its people. In this day and age, you can see our heroes anytime and anywhere. They are individuals who carry such an unremarkable presence that you could walk past them while going about your day.
Society labeled them the โUnsung Heroesโ
Look around you, and they are everywhere. Starting with the quiet morning long before the roostersโ crow. Jeepney and tricycle drivers drag their battered bodies from yesterdayโs exhaustion to begin another relentless day. They grip their worn steering wheels and handlebars to bring passengers safely to their destinations, all while waging another war against rising prices of common goods and fuels, the heat and fuel smoke absorbed by their bodies, and their number one nemesis: the unending traffic jam. For enduring this, we call them the heroes of the road.
Along the inland area of lush-green mountains and fields, farmers led their carabao through the hazy morning dews, starting their day by tilling the soil to prepare for the next crop planting. Across it is a coastline area; fishermen were already out at sea, waiting for fish with their cast nets under the rising heat of the early morning sun. When the sun glimpsed one last time at their departing backs as they returned home, carrying the harvested meal they hadn't sold, they only cast a helpless smile while assuring themselves of a greater tomorrow. They labor tirelessly to nourish the nation that reaps the harvest of their sweat and extracts every last bit of their dignity as a worker by earning at a below-average wage level. Yet, they persist. And for that, we label them as heroes and the backbone of the nation.
Inside the crowded departure terminal, a family member takes one heavy step after another through the boarding gate, fighting the anguish feeling overtaking their body for leaving their family and life behind to find better opportunities. Out in the streets, the hurried footsteps of individuals who quietly closed their own dreams to fulfill the role and responsibility pinned on them, juggle multiple minimum-wage jobs to keep the people who relied on them afloat in this economy, Meanwhile, in flood-zone areas, the disaster volunteers wade through waist-to-neck-deep floodwaters, hauling in their makeshift rafts the animals and appliances because of a storm that submerged their city after another failed multi-million peso project to hold back the rain waters.
These heroes carry no weapons, wear no capes, and their names are rarely penned in history books, but they were crowned as one for filling the gap of the crumbling system.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ผ๐
๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฒ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ผ
Generations after generations, our country continues to produce these peopleโalmost like a manufacturing company. And on every National Heroes Day celebration, the nation gathers to commemorate their sacrifices.
We recount their act of heroism.
We sing praises for their courage.
We uphold their selflessness as an ideal everyone should exhibit to give criticism to others.
Yet, it reaches a point where their hardship and resiliency become overly romanticized. Peopleโs vision towards these bleeding heroes was shrouded by the blinding light of heroism, completely disregarding the elephant in the roomโthe system holding the blade towards them.
Because what are we commemorating them for exactly?
Apparently, missing out on birthdays, graduations, and family gatherings makes you a hero. Enduring toxic and unpaid work culture just to put food on the table makes you a hero. Refusing to sell your integrity inside a decaying system makes you a hero. Allowing the broken system suck the life away from you makes you a hero. We handed out the title of โHeroโ like a medal for anyone whoโs in survival mode, and perhaps, yes, they deserve to be called such. After all, not everyone is willing to shoulder the crushing weight they carry.
But letโs all step back and look closely at this unsettling part of this heroic illusion. It appears to be a trend that the more burdens a person endures, the more heroic they become in everyone's eyes. We applaud resilience. We celebrate sacrifice. We admire silent endurance. We have turned this fiasco into a spectator sport, cheering over the athlete while ignoring the fact that the field and the platform we are standing on are on fire.
There is a significant difference between possessing a heroic spirit and being forced into survival. The former is an act of noble free will deep within ourselves; the latter is a desperate measure towards the universe that ties your hands. When endurance becomes the only alternative to collapse, calling it โheroismโ is an insult, for it masks the tragedy in the guise of a compliment.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฎ๐๐๐น๐ฒ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฒ๐น๐ฑ
Society loves the concept of courage for the same reason it loves good TV dramas: it makes them feel humane while mostly being indifferent towards the physical and emotional erosion the victim suffers. When a nation transforms its everyday struggles into tales of noble sacrifice, it turns institutional failure into a normalized civic virtue, dumping the burden onto the already struggling population.
The institution on other hand can easily recognize and applaud such novelty from these rising heroes; after all, it costs them nothing than to grant a budget reallocation towards more sustainable and eco-friendly projects, regulating the job market to establish fair living wages and decent work conditions, utilizing resources for its own use than offering high-cost alternatives from foreign commodities, constructing a standard and functional infrastructure that can't be easily pulverized by calamities, offering a land for actual housing projects, or a having a concrete safety net.
We celebrate Overseas Filipino workers as modern-day heroes of our nation. Still, we overlook the longing of a family member watching their family celebrate miles away on a lagging phone screen on an isolated night. We applaud blue-collar workers for their honest, decent work. Yet we never account for the harsh reality of their living conditions, or the hushed voices debating whether tomorrowโs income will be enough to cover rising bills and a childโs tuition. We admired children who were forced to grow up too quickly, denying the truth that an environment requiring a ten-year old to work in order to live is an indication of a society failing to protect them.
These individuals do not dream of carrying the weight of a broken nation on their shoulders, nor do they seek to be a legendary figure. Strip away the titles, the flattering recognition, and romanticized stories of resilience, and the truth stands bare: a civilian who is exhausted from having to survive every single day. Their tales do not stop after you read and admire them; they perpetuate endlessly until the system is fixed at its core. What they need is not applause, but a system that finally works.
On this National Heroes Day, perhaps the question is no longer about what makes a hero, because being compassionate already runs in our blood. It's an inherent characteristic of every Filipino. Instead, we start asking ourselves: โIn a nation that keeps producing and celebrating heroes, does it signify a sign of greatness or a sign that too many people are being forced to carry a burden?โ
โ๏ธ: Lyca Mae Bonso
๐จ: Ezekiel Aquino
