Pacman’s Ultimate Relief Good

              We Filipinos have witnessed through our own lens the various acts of kindness extended by goodhearted citizens of the world. It has been overwhelming; God knows we need all the help we can get. But if we look real closer, we’ll find that tough times like now call for more than one’s generous donation. We need something to believe in. We need something that can keep us going, not only for a day but more, for as long as we live. We need something, or should I say, someone to inspire and remind us we could still hope for the best. All that and more, fought for by no less than Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao himself, better known as Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao.

            Other than the usual low crime rates in the Philippines every time Pacman The Destroyer stages up a fight, last weekend’s conquest to earn his 7th world title did not just hit a world record but hit millions of Filipino hearts around the world. The pride and joy I felt for Pacman reached unfathomably high. For I know what that boxing match meant to all of us. The unlucky occurrences in our beloved country have taken fistfuls of hope from us. Pacman’s historic fight against Miguel Cotto is symbolic of what our nation is facing today. Even when a number of people ridiculously still doubted Pacman’s boxing prowess, he exceeded an already high expectation by knocking down his opponent, not once but twice. Consequently, even when lives and homes have been lost from the tragic blow of typhoons Ondoy, Pepeng, and Ramil, even when it looks as if there’s no light at the end of the tunnel,  I believe and I’m positive you believe as I do that we are so far, victoriously battling against these depressing crises and we shall continue to do so with flying colors. We should never belittle our capacities and instead, hold our heads high as brave Filipinos never giving up the fight.

            I’m no boxing expert and I could not sufficiently translate Pacman’s bout in terms of left hooks and uppercuts so I shall not try to speak the language but my own. As Pacman walked proudly Filipino, as Pacman stripped Cotto off his belt, as Pacman stands supreme in all of boxing’s history, we finally take back all the hope that was lost. These words may seem so small in comparison to the doors and windows you opened, to the thrill and Filipino pride you helped create, and to the HOPE you gave back to us, I’ll say it anyway, THANK YOU, MANNY!