May 6, 2022
Filipinos here probably know this viral news about a father who beat his young son to death which I read from Momentswithmatti's article. It's the same news that made Kelzy flashback to her bad old days with her cruel father.
How can a father beat his own son to death? Only a man under the influenced by illegal drugs can do that. And that was the main culprit of this terrible news that ended the life of an innocent boy, as well as the cruel father.
Prior to watching the news, I was saddened by a lot of questions in my mind.
Did the citizens do something to stop the father from beating the son?
Why did they beat the father to death when they didn't even save the son during the time the father was beating him?
Where was the mother by that time? Why did she allow her husband to beat his son to death?
After watching the video, I saw some citizens tried to save the boy but were hesitant to do so. Probably afraid of what the father could do to them. But what makes me mad at them is the fact that they were able to beat the father after he killed his son. The citizens could have just restrained the father so he couldn't continue hurting the son, besides, there was no any deadly weapon involved. And the two, father and son, probably are still alive by now.
Moreover, if that happens to us, my mother won't definitely allow my father to kill us, and she would sacrifice her own life just to save us. The same as what Kelzy's mother did when her drunk father tried to hurt them badly.
This terrible news reminded me of times when my father was still a monster. I was born and grew up in times when corporal punishment was still legal to be used by parents to reprimand their kids, even by teachers in school. And having a soldier father with an iron fist was even more toxic. All of us were commanded to follow all his rules, or else, a great punishment will be executed on us. We felt like we were on a battlefield with troops of soldiers who were ordered to follow the commander, and our own father was our own command leader. "The mistake of one, mistake of all." That was his main rule at home.
Every time he was at home, we felt like being caged inside our own home and weren't allowed to step out of it if not told to do so or ordered to run an errand outside. The house was always full of fear every time he raised his voice to command us or reprimand us for doing mistakes. What we feared more was his way of punishment.
Lucky I was to be a girl in the family as his iron fist doesn't land on me. Besides, I was obedient and always followed his rules even if our freedom to enjoy our childhood was robbed by him. Who wants to be whipped by a leather belt anyway?
However, my older brothers were just so naughty and disobedient, so they tend to receive punishment from him. He would whip them with a leather belt, wooden stick, or any hard weapon used to beat someone. My brothers, on the other hand, would cry out loud and would beg our father to spare them. The worst punishment they ever received was being hung upside down while each was inside a sack. There was even one time when he got annoyed with my brother's low IQ and he stabbed my brother's palm with a pen and blood oozed out. That was a terrible sight and fear formed inside me more, along with hatred for my father.
But unlike the aforementioned father who beat his son to death, my father has never been influenced by illegal drugs, or drunk when giving corporal punishments to my siblings, and he knows when to stop when he thought, he'd gone too far. He may have an iron fist but still has a conscience. He would be guilty upon seeing bruises or blood on my sibling's body parts after punishments. He would nurse them thereafter, wiped the blood, and treat the wounds.
But his way of punishing us continued even when we grew up, and even if we were strong enough to fight him back, we didn't fight back against him nor raised our voices to release our frustration at him due to respect. Unless we see him hurting our mother and innocent younger siblings. That would be the time that we would interrupt his bad doings.
We hated him as a strict father because of his corporal punishments and wicked character. One time he pointed a gun at me because I broke his ego, cut down his high ladder of pride, and released all my frustrations and hatred for him. I eloped but everything changed during my disappearance. I wanted to get revenge, not in an illegal way, but sweet revenge.
Unexpectedly, that incident led to his sudden change of perspectives and character for the betterment of everyone. He probably realized the importance of family when I ran away from home as it became incomplete and not harmonious. His iron fist soften as he got older, and corporal punishments ended.
A father as head of the family should set examples of good behavior. Yes, they can reprimand their children for bad doings or breaking the house rules, but should at least, provide discipline drenched with love. Your family is your family, not your servant, or burdens. You should value them full of love, as it is your rule as a father, and not just a provider.
But one thing that should be raised here is, never allow yourself to be influenced by illegal drugs! Not just to fathers out there, but everyone, especially the youngsters. We are all aware of the side effects of illegal drugs, which could certainly impair one's mental health, even the physical body. It wouldn't only impact yourself once you become addicted to it, but your loved ones and the people around you.
Be a human, not a monster. Value your life, your family, and the people around you.
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Katakot din yung papa mo te a buti naman nagbago nago na 🥶