What to tell today’s youth?

When, IN a previous column, I cited in passing the Kid’s Choice Awards as a unique feature of the National Children’s Book Awards/Best Reads, it was not intended to minimize the significance of the role of our child judges, all 10 of them, ages 7-14.  This, after all, is the one competition in the country that takes into serious consideration the input of child readers, the audience for whom the books are written. The process that the child judges went through was well-structured and deserved to be described in greater detail, in its own space.

The invited judges from private and public schools had to be established as book lovers. The older group of 11-14-year-olds was given 61 storybooks selected from the 2016 entries of 123 that included short stories, novels, and activity books. It was a happy assignment that the five older judges received: Read these 61 books within 42 days and choose your top 10 favorites.

When they returned, they had to reach a group consensus of 10 books to present to their younger counterparts. According to the adults who were privy to the deliberations, it was amazing to see how convincing the children were in presenting their choices. Pheonna Heart Ragasa of Trinity University of Asia,  Apriel Beltran of CAA Elementary School, Horacio Rafael de Peralta of Community of Learners, Alon Luna Fabros of  Beacon School,  and returning judge Rafael Varela of La Salle Greenhills had lengthy deliberations over their original list of 15 books that had to be trimmed down to 10. They did not only consider their personal favorites but also wondered what would appeal to the younger set of judges aged 7-10.

They ended up with nine books, which were then given to the younger judges: Sean Kirby Cruz of Kapitbahayan Elementary School,

Yasuyuki Avendaño of Sto. Cristo Elementary School, Alizza A. Tolentino of Holy Spirit Elementary School, Althea Hazel Fresno of Nueve de Febrero Elementary School, and Ricmel Padon of Dagat-Dagatan Elementary School. Their task for their afternoon meeting was to read all of the books in one sitting and select their top three for the Kid’s Choice for 2016. Although they were fast in their reading, the selection again involved much discussion. They had to learn to give and take and then accept the decision of the majority.

The Kid’s Choice was “Made Perfect in Weakness,” written by Didith Rodrigo, illustrated by Patricia Lascano, and published by  Bookmark Inc. It is the remarkable and admirable life story of Roselle Ambubuyog, the first visually impaired student to graduate summa cum laude from Ateneo de Manila University. The citation was written and read by Horacio Rafael de Peralta: “This book tells kids that their own weaknesses can make them even better. It teaches kids that weakness doesn’t make you a failure.”

All the child judges were asked to write and publicly read the citations for the rest of the shortlisted books. One could not but feel genuine pride for these youngsters who spoke with confidence about the elements of the stories, the statements that the stories made regarding family life, a mother’s love, losing a pet cat, being different, and the LGBT community.

I think of these 10 children, these young voices expressing their strong opinions—a microcosm of the students I dread facing in view of the disturbing developments in our country these recent weeks. How do I justify to them the dreaded possibility of an overthrown dictator being allowed burial on hallowed ground? Do I convince them that in life as in death, the dictator and his family never kept their word, whether in their promises to the nation or the last agreement with the Ramos administration on burial arrangements?  How to make sense of what appears to be our distorted sense of history, diminishing the sacrifice and the martyrdom of Ninoy Aquino, who was assassinated on Aug. 21, 1983? Do I implore them not to follow the adults who endeavor to rewrite history at every turn?

Quite fortunately, the truth will endure and live on. Thank goodness for graphic documentation: the book I am reading this month of August, #BuwanNgMgaAkdangPinoy, “Marcos Martial Law: Never Again” by Raissa Robles. Billed as

“A Brief History of Torture and Atrocity in the Philippines,” it is an important collection of primary documents on the dark and bleak period of martial law.

The introductory page with the poem of Ninoy Aquino written in detention, “God is Everywhere But is He Really,” sets the tone for the grim coverage in the next 260 or so pages of this coffee-table book which carries a student edition. Ninoy wrote: “… Where was He when Alvarez’s eyes/And those of young Lansang were/Being gouged out, their limbs broken/their bodies methodically mutilated?”

It continues on a more hopeful note: “Can anyone doubt the final/Destiny of the torturers, the persecutors and the tyrant?…”

Not to the Libingan ng mga Bayani!

Neni Sta. Romana Cruz (nenisrcruz@gmail.com) is chair of the National Book Development Board, a trustee of Teach for the Philippines, and a member of the Eggie Apostol Foundation.