I agree with certain points discussed in Michael L. Tan’s column “Love of country” (Inquirer, 11/29/12). Back when I was in high school and in the elementary, I had to go to school early in the morning just to attend the flag ceremony. Whenever we failed to sing the national anthem with elan, our teachers would tell us that it was as if we were not proud of being Filipinos. But I thought then that the halfhearted singing was due to the fact that the flag ceremony had become a routine activity.
Even if the flag ceremony is meant to instill the spirit of nationalism among young students, it is highly possible that students will see it as a mechanical routine and attend it only because the school says so. I, for one, came to a point when I attended it just so I would not get reprimanded.
However, I still believe that singing our national anthem from the heart is a way of showing our love for our country, our nation, our countrymen. Even in our own many little ways, we can show the world that we are proud to be Filipinos.
—JASMINA L. AFURONG,
jas.afurong@yahoo.com