I left our house in Antipolo at around 8am to meet my groupmates to make our production design for our TV production subject. I was already in LRT Legarda station, around 9:45am and I chose to ride a tricycle going to the overpass in Espana near UST. When we were about to leave, a driver suggested to our driver to add an extra passenger, their conversation went like this:
Driver 2: Brad, gawin mo ng pito yung sakay mo. (because the max. number of passengers in a tricyle is 6 but some choose to have an extra passenger.)
Driver 1 (driver sa tricycle namin): Wag na.
Driver 2: Bakit? Di mo kaya?
Driver 1: Hindi. Kaya ko ang pito - ayaw ko lang.
When I heard his answer, I was curious to know his reason why he didn't choose to put 7 passengers in his tricycle even though he can. So when we arrived at the terminal near the CPAR building, I had the guts to ask him.
ME: Kuya, bakit ayaw mong gawing pito yung pasahero mo?
Driver: (smiles) Simple lang. Umiiwas lang tayo sa aksidente.
I thought about his answer to my question and I realized this:
There are things in our lives that we choose to do and we choose not to. The reasons behind our decisions to act or not to act depend on what is important to us but sometimes our reasons don't make enough sense to other people. I remember being asked with these questions: Bakit di ka pa nanliligaw? or Bakit wala ka pang girflfriend? Bakit ka pumipikit pag nakakakita ng kissing scene? Hindi ka ba tinatamad pumasok?
With the driver's answer and action, it is obvious that he values safety and protection. He was not weak or afraid but he was wise enough to make such decision. The driver prioritized safety and protection over earning extra money. Maybe his friend saw his response to his suggestion as weird or not ordinary. Maybe he also saw something beyond having an extra income - that he would rather spend his earnings for food and clothing rather than hospitalization or repair for his tricycle because of careless driving.
When I was being asked with these questions, my answers didn't make much sense to my friends or some of them even felt like I was "overspiritualizing" things (if there is such a term). Like the driver, I prioritize protection.
Proverbs 4:23
(NIV)
Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
Proverbs 4:23
(ESV)
Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.
Bakit di pa ako nanliligaw? Bakit wala pa akong girlfriend? Bakit pag may kissing scene di ako tumitingin? Bakit pinipilit kong pumasok sa class kahit nakakatamad? It's because I choose to guard my heart - my life. I choose to guard the words that I will speak to a woman's heart. I choose to guard a woman's heart by guarding my actions towards her. I choose to guard my thoughts and keep it pure and free from malice. I choose to guard my dreams and one way to guard them is to "guard" my scores in school. I choose to guard my character and integrity as a man. There are walls that you need to put up now rather than being sorry later. Choosing to guard or prioritizing protection over experience and fleeting pleasure is not fear - it is being wise and courageous because not all people will agree to what you vowed to protect. Saying "No" doesn't always mean that you are weak and afraid - but sometimes saying "No" would require greater strength and courage than saying "Yes".
Finally, I do these things not because I saw their importance on my own but because Someone allowed me to see these things and through Him, by Him and for Him - I do these things. It's because I am not on my own, I was "bought with a price". Thank God for Grace.
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