The Holy Week is traditionally a time for taking a break, whatever one’s religious affiliation is.
This religious holiday is so much a part of Filipino culture not only because the country is predominantly Catholic but because even work and school grind to a halt, at least in two of five working days of the week.
The Catholic faithful try to keep religious traditions alive and hope that the younger generation will at least try to maintain them.
The more comfortable Filipinos go on vacations. Others go back to their home provinces to reconnect with extended family.
Many too are happy to stay home and do nothing —a respite from their punishing schedules. This in itself is a vacation. This is also the reason why the omnipresent traffic gridlock in the metro also takes a break during this period.
With the quiet comes the opportunity to take stock of one’s present situation and reflect on the healthy and unhealthy decisions one has made.
And if this can be done by individuals, this can also be certainly done by a nation reeling from the drama of everyday events and constantly losing sight of its direction.
In the next few days, it would be also good to pause and think about whether we are able to live with the changes we have seen in the past 21 months of this administration. Is this the change we bargained for? Are the things we are preoccupied with the really important issues we must be addressing? Or are we just taking part in the noise but are equally clueless about where we are headed?
We have been known to squander many things: The opportunity to elect good leaders, fresh beginnings, promises that arise from genuinely good intentions. This time, we must not squander the quiet.