Winning entry to the Essay Writing Contest in English of the 49th Annual National Convention of Junior Members and Teachers of the Children’s Museum and Library Inc. by Patrick Adriel Aure of Lourdes School Quezon City. The topic is: “Is a society without media possible? Discuss and explain.”
The Alchemist and the Philosopher’s Stone
“Ordinary people have denied the existence of the Philosopher’s Stone, saying it’s all myth and fantasy, that such valuable object is just an old wives’ tale; but extraordinary people, or what we call the alchemists, believed on its existence – that it has affected every life on this world through its magic. Thus, these people were enlightened for they knew the Stone’s essence – WISDOM.”
Media would have beaten Jesus Christ, Buddha and Mohammed if it was part of the survey asking who is the most influential person of the century. Thank the heavens, for media as a person would surely lead all people into an unknown culture, even perhaps create a religion named after itself. In fact, the media is so influential that people treat it as a vaccine for all diseases – curing the ailment of idiocy and complete ignorance; and also it is treated as the most contagious and most lethal virus – infecting unimmune people with its massive influence and charisma to the point of transforming a person with media as its soul.
It is a known fact that people would want to crucify media and punish him for his grievous sins and heinous crimes. Everybody blames everything on him. When moral issues are raised, who else is blamed? When fallacy surfaces and truth disappears, who else is blamed? When people get sick and tired of being sick and tired from all the blood-boiling events, who else gets the blame? He has been abused, misused, beaten and battered by people, yet he continues to incarnate in many forms, if not, resurrecting himself and prove the essence of his existence. After suffering these injustices, why does he continue to live on and on?
Simple. He continues to survive because its inexistence is the very synonym of apocalypse. Without media, a society is not possible and without society, there will be no way life can continue.
In the beginning, there’s one thing every being of this world always looked for. When man fell due to Adam and Eve’s disobedience, this even became more evident. Thanks to our innate curiosity and drive for knowledge, we will, and I mean always will, rigorously search for the TRUTH. Whatever it takes, as long as there is this drive, we will continue to quench our thirst amid the lies and fallacies within.
Media has served as the vessel for truth. With its power to influence, it has disseminated the information people need to satisfy that urge for veracity and clarity.
Transforming itself to various forms, it has fulfilled its expected duties to people. As the splendor of visualization, the capabilities of television have been fully utilized. People have attained knowledge through watching segments from other countries. Moreover, through the brother of television we know as the internet, various information surpassing all limitations have become possible. As the patrons of anti-ignorance, the radio and newspaper have worked together to deliver every detail of truth in the current events.
Other ways by which media became truth’s vessel is through its power to entertain. Yes, people yearn for truth, but they love entertainment. Shifting shapes from music to arts to soap operas to variety shows, it has become a necessity for life – much like how people value food and water.
Whether every creature on earth would agree or not, media has become the very synonym of life. People, consciously or not, totally embraced media through either complete acceptance or complete rejection. What only made the difference between acceptance and rejection is that allowing acceptance enabled people to be enlightened in the harsh realities of life, but not to the point of allowing it to take over and become media’s slave, when in fact it must be the vice-versa. On the other hand, utmost rejection has only solidified its status in the society, for an implication states blind rejection only proves narrow-minds and complete ignorance. Ignorance to the truth is not the nature of man, for rejection of such things only leads to death – death of the mind, the heart and the soul.
People may argue that media has also become fallacy’s vessel. In fact, the argument is supported with strong evidences such as bribery and death threats.
What we can say for this matter is that “every lie contains the truth.” Amid the tricks of the fallacies lies the explanation of the truth. It’s only up to us people in deciphering the truth behind lies, aided with our eternal urge for it.
Now it has been proved. Society without media is impossible. The question this time is: would you be the mediocre person, taking such power for granted, or would you be an alchemist, deciphering the media as the Philosopher’s Stone to transcend into vast heights and be enlightened with the euphoria of truth? Would you continue to pretend to reject media and ignore the information and the truth when in doing so you go against the very nature of man?
Wake up! Believe! Let not the connotation of media hinder you from achieving the truth! Let not the assumption of lies become a weapon against your ardent search! Let not the harshness of life become your fear in achieving wisdom!
It’s only when you know how to use the stone the time when you’ll fully utilize it. It’s all about how you handle things, not letting things handle you.
Become the enlightened alchemist that knows how the media works in our lives!
“Ordinary people have denied the existence of the media, saying it’s all lies and fallacy, that such power is just invented for the fall of every man; but extraordinary people, or what we call the alchemists, believed on its existence – that is has affected and in fact became life through its magic. Thus, these people were enlightened for they knew the stone’s essence – TRUTH.”
