HOME FOR GOOD -- Here's where change happens.: NOELLE & TITA CORY

Saturday, August 1, 2009

NOELLE & TITA CORY

We awoke to very sad though not unexpected news this morning. President Corazon C. Aquino died at 3:18am today.
We very seldom let the kids watch tv, much less the news. But their eyes were glued to the set in our bedroom this morning learning all about Tita Cory from the tributes being shown.
Noelle was particularly impressed that Cory stepped down graciously when her term ended in 1992. It seems Noelle had assumed that it was an option, if not a temptation, for people in public office to extend themselves beyond their terms.
It then occurred to us that although Noelle often listened to and sometimes participated in our discussions of the shortcomings of the current administration, she rarely saw models of good civic leadership. Today was an opportunity for her to get acquainted with one of the most shining examples.
Tonight Noelle had trouble sleeping. She came to us saying Tita Cory's story disturbed her. How could anyone find anything about Cory Aquino disturbing? Upon further probing, we found out that it was Ferdinand Marcos that troubled her. It was so hard for her to process some of the horrors of the Marcos administration (the "milder ones" that we could tell her about) that she could not sleep. She could not assure herself that the same things would not happen again.
All we could offer was one of the lessons we all could learn from Corazon Aquino's life: Prayer is the only defense we have from the things that we fear. And the surest way it works is by keeping us open and responsive to God's loving guidance.

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Why We're Home For Good

Many believe humanity is on the decline and is taking the rest of the world down with it. Government, big business, and even religion are among those that get blamed for this. This is not the place to discuss whether or not that's fair. What we'd like to offer here are ways that we believe can make things a little better.
Albert Einstein, pondering how atomic power could be used for either the benefit or the detriment of the world, once said, "...the solution to this problem lies in the heart of mankind."
We advocate enabling the family to rear more conscientious, reponsible and effective individuals. This is much more complicated than it sounds because there are economic, social and cultural factors that have diminished the family's capacity to do this, causing it to delegate its responsibility to school, church, government, mass media or chance.
There was a time when parents did not have to leave home to have livelihood. They were always on-hand to give their children not only moral guidance, but basic education, as well. (Actually, at the time, moral guidance was inseparable from basic education, unlike today.)
But then the Industrial Revolution happened. Parents then had to go off to the factory to work while children were sent to school to get educated. This caused a major upheaval in child-rearing practice which has become the norm today: Parents need to make a living so the children need to be cared for and brought up by someone else. In other words, the noun "parent" no longer means someone who parents. Isn't that ironic?
Fortunately, recent developments have made productivity at home possible again, allowing a growing number of parents to be more involved with their children. These and other related opportunities will be shared and discussed here.
We hope that through this forum, families can inspire, encourage and empower each other to devote ourselves more to making the world a better place -- in a way that only families can.