Though given permission, I obviously have to fictionalize and modify the characters and stories involved in this piece since the details are delicate. But most of them are true and, I think, good for others to know.
Antonio is a young fellow in his early twenties who works in a technical school for less privileged boys. That alone speaks volumes of the guy.
He has almost everything: Great looks and keen brains, very athletic and talented. I’m sure many would like him as their son-in-law. He works hard, is reliable in any weather, and damn honest to the bones.
He exudes the quiet air of a gentleman, what you call one with breeding. But he actually has a hard life. Though the parents are still alive, he practically lived as an orphan. Hunger and all sorts of difficulties accompanied him since birth.
His survival and success are due to his heart, his real treasure, which gave no shelter to any trace of evil, resentment and self-pity. I’m sure it was God’s grace that shielded him.
He personifies the triumph of the spirit over the flesh. In spite of the hardships, including the moral ones, he paid attention only to the charity and kindness given him by others. He disregarded the rest.
As a result, he learned only to live by charity and to give charity, immunizing himself to any tragic possibility. He disproved many popular theories in psychology and sociology.
He reminds me of another young man I met some years ago who died young. Fernando came from what you may call a dirt-poor family. But he had a mind of a genius and super-calm temperament.
I learned a lot from him. He showed me the ways of handling life-and-death situations. Up to now I use his ideas to lift the drooping spirits of poor kids I talk to, and the results are always successful.
The phenomenon of Fernando was that in spite of his harsh background, he finished college “summa cum laude” and topped an engineering board. But he was always humble and unassuming. To me he’s both a hero and a saint.
I thanked God profusely for getting to know Fernando and prayed even more profusely for Him to make more Fernandos. We just seem to have a boundless ocean of poor kids around needing help.
Anyway, back to Antonio. The other day he approached me, a little distressed. He said that since he just earned his engineering degree and has passed the board, he was thinking of working in some big companies.
He needed money. His parents are sick and his siblings—he is the youngest—cannot help. In fact, they need help. So he started applying. I know he would have no problem getting a job. Many people would like to get him immediately.
But in one company, the one he preferred, he was rejected. His application as sales rep, he said, went fast and smooth. Until the last interview. To be more precise, until the last question of that last panel interview.
He was asked if he was willing to “go all the way.” Not knowing what they exactly meant, he asked to be clarified and was told whether he was willing to dine and wine his clients, to offer girls and bribes to close a deal.
He did not hesitate to say, no, he was not willing. He said those were not necessary and there were many other ways to make a sale. The interviewers tried to change his mind, spending an hour for this. But it was still, no. So, he was rejected.
He’s back to applying again. I’m sure he’ll land a good job soon. But I can’t help thinking of the evil ways the world has become. Correction, evil men, because the world is not evil by itself. It is men who make it evil.
I hope and pray, even as I also make this heartfelt appeal, that these men change. There is no use for corruption at all to sell one’s products and to make a living.
We all need to be converted and to purify our hearts, conforming them to God. I’m sure this will go a long way to improve everybody’s situation. I’m sure this will lessen poverty and injustice and put us on the road to progress proper to us.
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Email: roycimagala@hotmail.com