MAN'S SEARCH FOR MEANING

THE METAMORPHOSIS

By  

AG Ernie D. Delfin

Newport Irvine Rotary Club

District  Chapter Development Chair

                                     “ I  cried and cried because I have no shoes

                                             until I saw a man  with no feet at all!”

                                                                                           --- An old Hindu proverb

               My life’s journey  so far has been exciting and wonderful considering my humble beginnings in a farm village in the Philippines where there was not even electricity till I was in high school and where our knowledge of another world was only glimpsed through the pages of a book.  Visualize this daily occurrence:  there was no TV in the entire village and only a few families owned transistor radios.  Like in the camp grounds,  we used firewood to cook our daily food (and that was three times a day!) but we survived!  Miraculously, to this day, we have dozens in our family tree who are now over 100 years and many of them never visited the hospital!  Many  people there were probably healthier than the average  resident of Orange County.  To this date,  the village where I was born has  no psychiatrists,  marriage counselors  or  massage therapists  unlike  our  opulent Orange County that the rest of the world that has TV envies!  (Update as of today:   most  families now have TVs, satellite dish,  cell phones  and internet access  courtesy of  a globalized economy.)

               With that background,  my life in Orange County is completely “different”  in terms of  material comforts  YET    it does not necessarily follow that I am happier nor more fulfilled because of those “things”…It only means that NOW I can suffer in comfort!   For instance, now  I complain about terrible traffic, three  decades or so ago, our family did not even a car!  To have our drinking water, we had to pump a well, now we just get bottled water from  the refrigerator.   Yes,  that indomitable  American spirit that there is a better way led to the creation of many  things that benefited the world.  That the American dream in each one of us made the world better  in so many ways!  But not in all aspects of our lives,  I think. 

                As I travel back to the Philippines and  also visit other countries,  there seems to be a  sense of   contentment and happiness of  people in these third world countries despite what they have or what they do not  possess compared to us in America.   As I have  seen  the socio economic conditions  of the very poor and the very rich,   I  am inclined that  mysteriously there is that degree of happiness and  human fulfillment that is not only really measured in terms of material opulence  but  also in  many   aspects beyond matter.  This observation  is confirmed everytime I attend a Rotary meeting in any club in any city or country.   Whenever  we Rotarians talk,  share what we  do (utilizing  our time, talent and treasure)  with  our local or international communities  to help alleviate the sufferings of the least  of our brothers and sisters,  we become  human BEINGS,     not just robots or machines producing things.   There is so much to be done in our world and  there is a great need for more Rotarians  to do what Rotarians do best: Service to Humanity as the best work of life.  Indeed,  as America’s  foremost guru, Dr. Steven R. Covey  writes that   there comes a time when a man craves and is drawn to  a life that is more balanced in the four quadrants of his being:   physically (TO LIVE),  mentally (TO LEARN) socially (TO LOVE) and spiritually (TO LEAVE A LEGACY).   I  believe that as many Rotarians pass the mid century mark of  their earthly existence, the last quadrant, leaving  a legacy,  becomes a great motivator  for them to do more Service Above Self.   As a  Rotarian,  I  am also doing what I am doing because I love doing it,  not  in the quest for human applause but simply to leave the world a better place for my children and their children.

           At this stage of my life when my two children are now adults,  I can now understand and appreciate  different kinds of books like  “Purpose Drive Life”  authored by Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren and “Mans Search for Meaning” by a Holocaust Survivor Dr. Victor Frankl   and many other books with  spiritually sprinkled  messages.   Twenty five  years ago  I  was fascinated with  and devoured hundreds of books like   “Art of the Deal”  by Donald Trump and  “Nothing Down” by Allen  and “Speed of Thought” by Bill Gates,  and many  books on how wealth is created.   When all is said and done, however,   I believe that this kind of  profound metamorphosis  happens to any normal  man once he  is reminded and accepts  his own mortality!

            To end this column,  let me share one definition of success that I see every day that  is hanging in my home office,  to sum it all:

WHAT IS SUCCESS?

You can use most any measure

When you’re speaking of success.

You can measure it in fancy home,

Expensive car or dress.

But the measure of your real success

Is the one you cannot spend.

It’s the way your kids describe you

       When they talking to a friend!                                                           

                                                                                     ---by  Martin Buxbaum

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