A Fellow to Follow

by: Onofre Pagsanghan

"Bayanihan" painting by Dante Hipolito

It is easy enough to admire winners, front-liners, students who collect medals, who stack up honor cards, who stand on center stage. For instance, it is easy enough to admire Jim. For one thing he was our grade school valedictorian. In addition he won second place in the national competition for poster design last year. Moreover he is the brightest light in our Varsity Swimming Team this year. Finally he has just bagged the leading role in our big play this year. As a result, much as Jim is only a freshman, he is quite popular in school. ln fact he is popular even out of school. Indeed, it is easy to admire the stars on center stage.

My composition is not about Jim. In fact it's not about anyone in the front line, in the limelight, or on center stage. For one thing he was our grade School valedictorian. In addition he won second place in the national competition for poster design last year. Moreover he is the brightest light in our Varsity Swimming Team this year. Finally he has just bagged the leading role in our big play this year. As a result, much as Jim is only a freshman, he is quite popular in school. In fact he is popular even out of school. Indeed, it is easy to admire the stars on center stage.

My composition is not about Jim. In fact it's not about anyone in the front line, in the limelight, or on center stage. For one thing, most of the compositions, I'm sure, will be about the "big" people, the conspicuous people, the people who stand out. For another thing, the outstanding people do not need extra encouragement. Because of these, I'd like to focus on the "small" people, the inconspicuous people, the people who don't stand out, but who are nonetheless outstanding.

This composition is really about Greg. Greg is not stupid. In fact, he made it to the honors class. But Greg has an academic Achilles heelㅡ Math. Because of this, Greg never gets honor cards. In fact, he might go to summer class. Nevertheless, Greg always tries his best. For one thing, he always does his homework. Moreover, he is always attentive in class. In fact Greg spends more than an hour a day doing extra work on Math. For instance, in the last quarterly exam, I know for a fact that he studied for four hours. I should knowㅡwe studied together. The results? I got ninety-two; Greg got seventy-one. And I know for a fact, Greg studied harder than I did.

Greg does not stand out as a Math scholar. He is outstanding as a man. Greg would keep on getting failing marks in Math. He would never give up. This one student would always be there, doggedly turning in every assignment, doggedly pitching in his more than an hour extra-study on Math, in spite of a seemingly endless downpour of failed quizzes. This one Christian doggedly follows the Christ who would fall many times on the way of the cross, but would refuse to give up. The fellow is a fellow to follow. This is a man.

Greg has another sterling quality honesty. Greg realizes that he might fail in Math; but he does not cheat. Several boys in class cheat. I even know two honor students who cheat. Greg has failed Math in two quarters, yet he would not cheat. Even when the teacher is not looking. Greg would not cheat. Even when his neighbors have their papers blatantly exposed, Greg would not cheat. Cheaters would say, That's stupidity." Men of worth would say, "That's honesty."

Some guys in class laugh at Greg because he has a seventy in Math, yet the Math teacher gave him A for effort. He has to. If you knew Greg, you'd know that an effort mark less than A would have been unjust. Some of us belittle the effort mark; but in the eyes of God, the honest effort mark is perhaps our most important marks, perhaps it is the only mark that counts. God does not expect all to turn in honor cards; but he expects us to do our best.

It is easy enough to admire winners, front liners, students who collect medals, who stack up honor cards, who stand on center stage. It is not as easy to admire quiet yet unsinkable students like Greg, who refuse to cheat, who refuse to give up. It takes more perception and perhaps, even wisdom, to recognize people who don't stand out, but who are outstanding.

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