In Memory of KieTh
I was looking for my high school physics notebook in my drawer when I noticed an old newspaper. I picked it up. It wasn’t a newspaper actually.It was the Brokenshire Science High School (where i graduated high school) Publication or also known to us as “the Scroll”. It was a Jun-Oct 2004 edition. I started reading and as I turned to the 9th page, one topic caught my attention. “TRADITION vs. MODERNIZATION“. Hmmm…quite interesting. Then I read the name of the person who wrote it. Keith Irving Montoya. I paused for a while… Read it again…Keith Irving Montoya. I remember him very well. A tall, pale-white guy.One of BSHS’ finest students. The President of the Student Body Organization during his 4th year in high school. We were not classmates though (he’s a year older than me). We don’t know each other personally but I really admire him. He’s intelligent, a good student, a good leader and kind to all (especially to the lower years). We sometimes talk because we have some common friends. Everyone thought he’ll be one of the successful students in the future.As far as i know, he continued studying at Brokenshire College, took up Bs in Nursing as is now on his 4th yr…SUPPOSEDLY!
Here comes the sad part of the story.
Who would have thought that this ideal student would take away his own life? According to his friends, he committed suicide due to pressure, but whatever his reasons may be, I don’t judge him. And nobody should for we don’t have any idea of what he had to go through.
Anyway, I’m glad I still have a copy of “the Scroll” and able to have it posted here. Somehow it reminds me that there once lived a man whose intelligence and kindness are unexceptional.
Here it is:
TRADITION vs. MODERNIZATION
by: Keith Irving Montoya
Another year is fast approaching! Year 2005 and surely great discoveries and inventions will again contribute to our modern land. Modernization that kills old traditions…
come to think about it, can we, people, live in a a country without modernization? Of course not! In fact, modernization is what we all need — for instant access, for fast deliveries, for immediate results and for easy tasks. That’s what we love about modernization. It makes our jobs easier and less hassle. But didn’t it come to your minds that because of modernization, traditions were forgotten and is slowly dying? Modernization is like a criminal! It locks, hides, and eventually kills its victim –the tradition!
On the other hand, traditions are dying. We tend to replace our unique traditions for the sake of modernization. Kissing the hands of the elders, or what is known to us as “pagmamano”, as a sign of respect to them is one of the best traditions among Filipinos. But today, not even one third of Filipino youth does this old dying tradition. They say that it’s a poise offender. Among young Filipino children, using “po” and “opo” are al;so being practiced for answering the elderly. But like “pagmamano”, they are also fading away.
Now my question is: What more traditions do you want to die? The answer lies in our conviction on healthy lifestyle.
