(NOTE: This article was first published on this blog on August 8, 2009.)
They say that "life is a journey to death". That makes Death the final destination of our earthly existence. And that Death is a sure thing to come--sooner or later.
Since it has an ending, we can liken life to a course or study. After the course completion, a student is rated by his teacher or instructor.
Likewise, Life, being compared to a course, must have some kind of rating, too, in the form of judgment or how people will regard the person who died. As the grade or rate a student gets for his studies will be based on his class performance, so will the judgment given upon someone's death be a reflection of how well he or she lived his or her life; of how he or she had affected the lives of others.
We know that people have individual differences. They may be categorized into the ordinary and the extraordinary. Ordinary people go for things that are common and do things that many--the great majority--usually do. Extraordinary people, on the other hand, do things that are unusual or less popular. Ordinary people, therefore, outnumber their extraordinary counterpart.
We live in a material world and our observation on ordinary people will tell us that they desire material possessions. They go for worldly things like fame, power, and fortune.
Exceptional or extraordinary people, on the other hand, contemplate more on "what to be" rather than "what to possess". They go for things that last… things that are pleasing to God.
I watched the necrological services for former President Cory on TV. Many delivered their eulogies praising Cory for what she did when she was still alive.
A eulogy, according to the dictionary, is a high praise; a commendatory oration or writing especially in honor of one deceased.
Cory came from a wealthy family. She was vested with powers when she took over the presidency. She was popular in her native land. She was famous all over the world.
Fortune. Power. Fame. These are what ordinary people aspire for and busy themselves with. Cory had them all. But nowhere in the eloquent eulogies during the necrological services for her were they given importance if ever they were mentioned.
What were mentioned and given emphasis, though, were her godly attributes: her selflessness, love for country, humility, patience, simplicity, honesty and integrity, her being prayerful, her devotion to the Blessed Mother, her obedience to the Will of God, and like intangible characteristics no one will ever seem to be interested in.
Yes, her obedience to the Will of God.
Bishop Socrates Villegas at the Requiem Mass at the Manila Cathedral said, "God has called you back home." And in his homily, Fr. Arevalo said, "What a great gift God has given to our people, in giving Cory to us..."
Yes, Cory is of God and was sent by the Father for a mission. Now that it is accomplished, she has to go back to God.
Cory, indeed, was never alone. Hindi siya nag-iisa. She was, in fact, in good company. For didn’t the Son of God undergo the same trials and painful ordeal that Cory underwent?
Cory is now gone. We saw the end of her journey and how she was judged for living her life. What honor could be higher than what was given her—a prolonged standing ovation and an outpouring of love and affection from a grateful people whose lost freedom she restored—that very same race that her martyred husband said was worth dying for.
Cory's death has given us a hint on what really matters in life. How shall we respond to the example she had shown us?
