Declamation

•  Where does it all start?

  As I went down to the kitchen, I sensed that our house was awfully and unusually quiet. I couldn’t figure out why. Oh well… I turned on the television to check if there’s anything interesting to watch.
• I chanced upon Channel 5 where reporters have flocked to the area where a middle-aged man was lying dead, shot by an anonymous criminal.

  “Live from the crime scene… the police just announced a nationwide search for this heartless murderer on the loose…”
• I couldn’t take anymore of these bad news so I switched off the TV and went upstairs to read. Just as I was about to open the door to my room, I heard a loud scream. It came from my parents’ bedroom. Before I could run to check, my mother stormed out of their bedroom, a mess and crying.
• “Catherine, let’s leave this house. I can’t stand living with your father anymore,” was what she told me in between sobs.

  “Why, Mom? What happened? What is it this time?” “I said, go pack your bags! No questions asked.” She began to shout at me.
• “No, Mom. I won’t go.” And then out came Dad with a bag of clothes. He was ready to throw it right at Mom’s face.

  “Stop it, Dad! Dad, please! Mom, please stop it! Please stop fighting!” was my endless cry as I try to part them to make them stop from hurting each other. But the shouting never stopped.
• I covered my ears to strain off their bitter exchange of words. Stop, please stop.. please… I closed my eyes so I couldn’t see them hitting each other. I prayed so hard for it to end. Why? Why can’t we have peace in this family?.

  Dad says one thing, Mom says another and then they argue and start shouting at each other. Now the house is so quiet. So quiet, I could almost hear the sad beatings of my heart.
• Is this peace? Is it in silence that we find it? Is silence equal to being peaceful? I mean, who are we kidding, right? How can we achieve peace when even in our family we couldn’t stand a day without fighting? It’s simply impossible!
• And then, the words of Confucius resonated to my ear… “A peaceful world is built by individuals at peace. It all starts from within us.”

  Yes! Peace could then be defined not by the silence of the cemetery but by the spirit of unity that is alive in every individual. It is personified by a family bonded together in unity.
• Mom, Dad, if you are not one in patching things up and in forgiving each other, then, it’s going to be a very long and difficult process before we could have peace in our family.
• In our country, the call of the time is to have peace…without unity, justice and truth, peace will continue to be an elusive and fleeting dream for our nation. Where does it all start? Right in the very core of our being.

  Peace and unity start with me!