Sing for absolution

Have you ever been a victim of injustice? You know, that kind where you have exhausted your very best, poured your sweat and heart out and just when you think you deserve the recognition or perhaps the win, in the end it dawns on you that you were cheated on or perhaps somebody else who cheated bags it?

The situation: Applicants for this certain company line-up in the receiving area armed with thick bundles of paper, all dressed in business suits, looking more formal than royalty. Each are murmuring their “memorized” speeches and constantly reviewing their requirements if they missed any.

A name is called by the coordinators. A short, dark-skinned, chubby girl wearing glasses, face adorned with pimples, ascends for the interview. After a short while, she goes back to the receiving area. A fellow nervous applicant asks her for tips and she replies in straight, highfalutin English. She smiles, confident that she has done well.

Another name is called. This time, a pretty, porcelain-skinned, curvaceous girl, with tresses like Demi Moore’s and physique akin to Paris Hilton’s, enters the grilling room. With the same procedure, she is eventually released. The same nervous applicant asks for advice and is answered with broken and nowhere-to-be-found English.

The result: The coordinators announce the ones who gets the part and the ones who gets the cut.

The straight-English speaking girl alongside others who gets rejected leaves the office down-hearted and confused, while the model-looking, ramp Barbie jumps up and down in triumph, all beaming as she gets through.

Sounds familiar?

Nowadays, earning prestige and respect, or landing a job is as easy as 1, 2, 3. Success seems to be just an easy catch — that is if you’re blessed with beauty or a great body. Intelligence isn’t necessary anymore.You don’t need guts. You don’t need A+’s. You don’t need a stream of medals and awards. All you have to do is just whip up your Miss Universe smile or your Mr. Body Builder’s pose and viola! You get free pass, extra credit, extra service and extra respect.

I think this is just pathetic. Where’s the good in being physically endowed if you don’t have the wits and the heart for what you do? Well, if you get the package, beauty and brains, then, good for you. However, survival isn’t just about the bold and the beautiful department. 

The world today needs a wake-up call. Heck, we are slowly losing our footing, our values, and our sense of righteousness just because.

Echoing the band Muse, “Sing for absolution” with me? Anyone?

(As published in SunStar Davao | September 20, 2009, Davao City, Philippines)