Shaping a Utopian City
D’ jolly dreamer
St
A
clean and serene city in the midst of this somewhat chaotic world… A city of
everyone’s choice… A city of disciplined, healthy, educated, learned and
God-fearing citizens… A city of peoples who find unity in diversity… A city
with promising greatness and fame like Camelot… A city synonymous to paradise… It’s
the city of my dreams – a utopian city.
Does
it exist? I would promptly say “No!”. So far, I haven’t heard one to exist nor
to have existed on any part of this universe. Would it be possible to shape or establish
one? In quick reply, I would confidently say “Yes!”. To establish a utopian
city may sound ridiculous but not impossible. Objectively speaking, it is very
much possible although it is not an easy task. It is a gargantuan task to be
shared by its would-be citizens. Without a doubt, it is time-consuming and
definitely challenging. Well, how should the citizens do it?
To
establish a utopian city requires radical transformation - transformation on
the part of different peoples who are more than willing to take part in shaping
or establishing such city. Moreover, such transformation may only take place if
these individuals assimilate and practise the golden types of love that subsume
man’s necessary actions. These precious types of love include: love for God,
love for one’s self, love for one’s family, love for fellowmen, and love for
the environment.
Love for God is the first and most
important type of love that every utopian citizen must possess. Why? It is
simply because the other four types follow if this already exists. If one has
sincere love for God, he will love himself, his family, his fellowmen, and his
environment in order for him to be considered a veritable citizen in the
utopian city. Consequently, he will value everything that the Divine Providence
has created in this wide expanse of the world.
Love for one’s self is the second type of
love that entails numerous acts on the part of any individual. If one truly
loves God, he should love his own self as he is created by God. In doing so, he
must practice a healthy lifestyle by taking and doing things in moderation. As
such, he should engage in sports in order to be away from the lure of worldly
pleasures or vices. An aspiring utopian citizen must study hard to be prepared
to soar on greater heights in the not so low horizon. Furthermore, if one truly
loves himself he will plan before entering into the gates of commitment such as
marriage (for in doing so, he will be responsible enough to provide the
essentials for his family). Meanwhile, he should learn how to forgive others in
order for his heart to be cleansed from bitterness – that he will be a model to
those who are bitter in life. Anyone therefore who dreams to be accepted in
this city must exemplify a virtuous life…life that is worthy of emulation. Above
all else, he must not lose hope in shaping the city of his dreams (as it
appears impossible) by transforming himself first.
Love for one’s family is the third fundamental
type of love. It is needed in shaping a utopian city for the reason that it is
the basic unit of society. If one loves his family, he will start with the rudiments
which are needed to establish a family worthy of a utopian city. As such, he
must be a respectful and grateful offspring; and for all intents and purposes, a
cooperative and kind sibling. Accordingly, he must respect and help his parents
in doing household chores. As a sibling, he must guide his other brother/s and
sister/s to study well and aim for excellence; and remind them to take care of
themselves… as their parents find joy in seeing them responsible and healthy.
And later on, he must persuade and lead his brothers and sisters in supporting their
parents emotionally, spiritually and financially as they grow old.
Love for fellowmen, the fourth type of
love, is to be included for the
following practical reasons: (a)
societies can never be peaceful without the power of love; and (b) peoples can never be in harmony with their
fellowmen without their initiative to love one another. There must be this type
of love as it is the glue that binds the different families together. One must not
only know and befriend his neighbors but he must also jubilate with them in
their successes. On the other hand, he must sympathize or even empathize with
them whenever they face adversaries or tribulations in life. Being aware of the
differences in religion, he must respect his fellowmen as he wants them to
respect him. Meanwhile, he must forgive his fellowmen if they have trespassed
against him; yet, he must let them realize their mistakes in order for them to
be careful next time. Furthermore, he must participate actively in community activities
and cooperate with others in implementing projects in the society. Finally, for
the improvement of the utopian city, one must unselfishly share his God-given
talent and resources (if it’s necessary) without personal reservations.
The ultimate type of love that every utopian
citizen must learn is love for the
environment. A city must not only be serene but it must also be clean. As a
citizen of this utopian city, one must remember the trite yet meaningful
saying: “Cleanliness is next to godliness”. Hence, he must have a sense of
volunteerism in cleaning the environment. He must model such by sweeping his
backyard regularly and by putting things into order. In addition, he must be smart
enough to remind his parents if their cars - a smoke-belching car worsens air
pollution - are causing air pollution so that they will let it be repaired. Or
better still, he may traverse the city using a bicycle so that others will see
the advantages of it especially on the environment. Lastly, he must plant trees
to beautify the environment as well as to prevent flash floods and soil erosion.
Yes! A utopian city may
be shaped. It may be established provided that such types of love should be
assimilated by everyone who wishes to belong to this perfect city.
However, there are still
two big questions left to be addressed: “When would it be established?” and “Who
should be the pioneer citizens?”. Well, with folks who are willing to imbibe
the golden types of love within their heart, a utopian city of dreams may soon
(in the very near future) come into reality. And I – I have resolved to be one
of those individuals - I am starting it now. At this moment, there’s a ray of
hope for the city of my dreams because as a responsible student, I have the
will-power to dream of a utopian city; as an idealistic youth, I have the
distinct power to initiate transformation; and, as a young educator, I have the
tremendous power to influence others’ lives. With those aforementioned, I am
certain that a UTOPIAN CITY, the city
of my dreams, is already waiting to come down upon the horizon.
*utopian-a description given to a place that is perfect or
paradise-like
*chaotic-disorderly
*Camelot - In English Literature, it is the famous place
where King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table gather
for merry-making .
No comments:
Post a Comment