I read an FB post from Sass Rogando Sassot and I could not agree more. It was blunt, uncomfortable, and very easy to dismiss if one prefers comfort over truth. But sometimes the truth needs to sting a little before it can teach. The core idea is simple. Geography is not a feeling. History is not a wish. Reality does not bend because we are angry or hurt.
China is a neighbor of the Philippines. It has always been there and it will always be there. No amount of slogans, hashtags, or moral posturing will move it an inch away from our shores. We share the same waters. We share trade routes. We share a region that does not pause just because we are upset. This is not a choice. This is a fact. Pretending otherwise is like arguing with gravity and expecting to float.
We also need to be honest about scale and time. China is an old civilization with thousands of years of statecraft behind it. The Philippines, as a modern nation, is very young. Less than a century of independence is not an insult, it is a timeline. For most of human history, the Philippines as a single political entity did not exist. That does not make us worthless, but it does mean we are still learning how to act like a mature state. Young states that act like old empires usually end up humbled.
We cannot treat China the way we treat a noisy neighbor in a barangay. There is no higher homeowners association that can come in and fix this for us. International law is important, but it is not a magic spell. It works best when power is balanced or when interests align. When they do not, law alone will not save you. Grown nations know this and plan around it. Immature ones shout and hope someone bigger hears them.
China is not just a rival claimant in a maritime dispute. It is a major trading partner. It is a source of tourists, investments, raw materials, and supply chains that many of our industries rely on. This is not about liking China. It is about recognizing interdependence. Cutting off your nose to prove a point does not make you principled. It makes you poorer.
The idea that constant confrontation will somehow lead to victory is pure fantasy. Loud diplomacy may feel good at home. It plays well on social media. It gives people a sense of moral clarity. But nations do not survive on vibes. They survive on strategy. Strategy requires patience, restraint, and the ability to talk even when you do not trust the other side.
Talking is not surrender. Negotiation is not weakness. It is what adults do when they understand that total victory is rare and mutual benefit is often the best available outcome. Sitting down with China does not mean giving up claims or dignity. It means accepting that solutions in the real world are often messy, partial, and slow.
The banana plant and sycamore tree metaphor hurts because it hits close to home. A banana plant grows fast but has shallow roots. It looks fine until a strong storm comes. A sycamore tree grows slowly, spreads wide, and holds firm. This is not about race or culture. It is about institutions, long term planning, and national discipline. Storms in geopolitics are not rare events. They are the normal state of affairs.
We also need to drop the fantasy that the world is waiting to save us. Countries act based on their interests, not on our feelings. Allies help when it aligns with their goals. When it does not, statements replace action. This is not cruelty. This is how the international system works. Expecting otherwise is setting ourselves up for disappointment.
Harsh as it sounds, the world will not stop turning if we fail. That should not depress us. It should wake us up. If we want to matter, we have to make ourselves matter. That means fixing our house, strengthening our economy, building real cities beyond one overcrowded capital, and creating value that others need. Respect in global politics is earned through capability, not demanded through outrage.
Manila being our only true metro is a symptom, not a joke. It reflects decades of poor planning, weak institutions, and short term thinking. You cannot project strength abroad when your foundations at home are cracked. You cannot negotiate from confidence when you rely on others for almost everything.
None of this means we should abandon our rights or stay silent forever. It means choosing battles wisely and understanding that timing matters. A calm voice backed by preparation is more powerful than a scream backed by nothing. Real growth is boring. It takes time. It requires humility and the willingness to accept uncomfortable truths.
What Sass points out is not anti Filipino. It is painfully pro reality. Loving your country does not mean telling it comforting lies. It means telling it the truth even when it hurts, because only then can it grow roots deep enough to survive the storms that will surely come.
If we truly want to flourish, we need to stop acting like perpetual victims and start acting like responsible adults in a tough neighborhood. The giant next door is not going away. The sea is not moving. The world is not waiting. The only thing that can change is us.
