Inconsistent Creed
We all know the fact that aside from humans, animals, and plants there are other elements in this world that cannot be perceived by our naked eyes, but we know that they are existing. The Philippines is rich in superstitious beliefs, and one of these is the practice of saying āpasintabiā in Tagalog, sometimes translated as an "apology.ā But it is really more of an "Excuse me, please"it is a ādefense mechanismā we say to preclude the āunseenā element from hurting us because they are disturbed by our intrusion.
In todaysā generation, superstitious beliefs or traditions are not really practice because of the modernization and urbanization, and people who are still into that kind of thing are called āold school". The sad reality is that the practice of āpasintabiā is slowly disappearing. This reminds of what kind of people our society has right now ā fearless and reckless. The rampant killings, rape, drug related issues, etc., are the āunseen elementā that some are not afraid to do. Instead of excusing themselves as they intrude into other peoplesā lives, they now try to afflict people.
This made me realized that people do not anymore practice saying "Pasintabi" because we are now in an urban jungle, where trees and plants are getting smaller. This also shows the impact of the subtle destruction of the nature. We no longer fear nature because it is now a concrete jungle, and I think even those "unseen creatures" will fear to live in this kind of world.
The practice of āpasintabiā is not only applicable to those āunseen creaturesā, but also to the people. Respect begets respect. Whether it is living or non-living if we will just respect each other everything will be peaceful.











