BEING A FILIPINO

It may be said that the Filipinos are intelligent, with retentive memory, quick perception, and talents for art and science. They also are gentle, friendly, and cheerful people, noted for their courtesyand hospitality. Filipinos are famous not only for their warm hospitality, but also for their close family ties. The parents work hard and sacrifice much for their children; in return, the children love and respect them and take good care of them in their old age. Filipinos owing to their beautiful country, are passionately romantic. They are ardent in love as they are fierce in battle. They are born poets, musicians and artists. Filipinos are a liberty-loving and brave people. They valiantly resisted the Spanish, American and Japanese invaders of their native land. They rank among the bravest people of the world. Filipino courage has been proven in the Battle of Mactan (1521), in the Battle of Tirad Pass (1899), in the battle of Bataan, Corregidor, Bessang Pass during World War II, and in many other battlefields. Gratitude is another sterling trait of the Filipinos. They are grateful to those who have granted them favors or who are good to them. Their high sense of gratitude is expressed in the phrase Utang na loob (debt of honor). Filipinos are cooperative. They value the virtue of helping each other and other people. They cherish the ancestral trait of bayanihan, which means cooperation. In rural areas, when a man is building, repairing