Don't Waste Your Time

If the mother earth is completely destroyed, are you satisfied with the things you did to help?

When NASA climate scientist Peter Kalmus, along with other scientists, chained themselves to the JP Morgan Chase Building in Los Angeles on April 6, they plead for the people to act on the climate crisis and for the leaders to discontinue the use of fossil fuels. This protest is after the alarming UN report that warns the people that the world will be experiencing the disruptions caused by climate change in three years if the fossil fuel continues to destruct the atmosphere.

The reason why the scientists chose the building JP Morgan Chase & CO is because it is the company that funds the most fossil fuel projects. Therefore, this act signifies that the significant role that has to be played to save the mother earth are those who control the production of plastics that the consumers consume, the corporations that invest in fossil fuel, and the mining companies.

But the plea was answered by an arrest that sparked the attention of the public. The hashtag #LetTheEarthBreathe took over the social media platforms and almost everyone with a phone and internet was reminding their friends and families to help the world breathe again.

And for an ordinary citizen like Mang Berto, who does not have any social media accounts, he knows that he did the best that he could.

It was a bright morning of Holy Friday when I saw him with his red cap, striped shirt, and a white trash bag. When asked what he was doing, Mang Berto said, with a smile, that he was helping his neighborhood.

According to him, he swept more garbage today than usual because of the trash that was left behind by the participants of the traditional ‘alay-lakad’ last night.

Alberto G. Carlos, a 67-year-old man living near the highway in Caloocan City, has always been sweeping the streets of Quirino Highway every morning since 2009. His day starts at four in the morning when he can see the sun shine its first rays on the establishments near his house. That is his cue to get the broom and the dustpan to start sweeping along the highway.

He will start from his home up to the pharmacy, and if summed up, Mang Berto cleans the storefront of almost twenty establishments.

He clarified that this is pure volunteer work, and he does not accept any money from the local government unit.

“I am not paid by the municipality for this work because I do it voluntarily. I do not ask for any compensation. But sometimes, the owner of the stores that I have cleaned are the ones who give me coffee, bread, or even a new broom,” he stated.

Instead, Mang Berto admitted that he often finds himself in the barangay to settle a dispute between him and the person he scolded for throwing sacks of garbage every night in the alleyway near him.

“I am the one who always gets into trouble in the barangay because I scold whoever throws a sack of garbage in the alley since I am guarding that place every night.”

But he also confessed that such an event does not discourage him and his willingness to help. Because at the end of the day, what matters to Mang Berto is that he did his best to help on cleaning up the environment.

It is, if not one – the main purpose of why he is doing this activity for thirteen years.

The other reason that keeps the broom in Mang Berto’s hand is because of the ache that he felt in his body to do the routine that kept his mornings busy every day and the routine that kept his neighborhood clean.

Sweeping the streets of Quirino Highway has been the only thing that makes Mang Berto busy since it has been long ago since he stopped working. He was a driver in his early days. It was 1974. But the sun had set on him as a driver after he got into an accident and the company that he works for shut down.

Indeed, Mang Berto’s routine and purpose have a great grip on him that even his children could not get him to stop doing it.

“Even if my children are telling me to stop meddling as I might get into trouble, I really cannot stop myself from sweeping. I think it is because I am already accustomed to doing this activity every morning,” Mang Berto admitted.

In the end, for Mang Berto, knowing that he had contributed to make his neighborhood better makes him feel satisfied.

Like a purpose fulfilled, he can gladly sit on his chair and sip his morning coffee while looking at the community he lived in almost all of his life, spotlessly clean.

"I know that what I do every day is just a small act for the world. But even though it is small, it is still nice to learn that I am helping my neighbors and my city.”

That is why he also encourages the people not just to do what he does every morning but to do the best thing they can to help their community and the world.

“I am not saying they should also clean their city every day, but they should do what they think they can do to help their community. For instance, throwing garbage in the right bin.”

Indeed, the battle outside social media is as important as informing our relatives and friends. Dumps are inside the house and plastics are outside the streets. Meanwhile, the time is ticking, days are getting warmer, the typhoons are coming frequently. So, don’t waste time. Let us start with ourselves and in our place.

Because even though the significant move is not in the hands of the public, but on those on top of the social hierarchy, Mang Berto is the proof that an ordinary citizen can make a change. He can make the world a better and clean place by starting with his neighborhood.

Now imagine if there are ten Mang Berto’s in one community. Imagine if there are twenty or thirty.

Imagine if there is one community where all of its residents are the likes of Mang Berto. How clean would that community be?

And if that one community soon doubled and tripled to make a country, how much relief would it bring to earth and help it breathe?

So, let me ask the question again; if the mother earth is completely destroyed, are you satisfied with the things you did to help?

Because for Mang Berto, he is certain.

He is certain that for as long as he lives, he will continue to get his broom and sweep the alleyways and streets of the busy highway that connects the San Jose Del Monte and Quezon City.