by Rev. Dr. Mariano C. Apilado
Last Thursday, June 03, 2010, when I left Davao, I had the strangest feeling, well not so strange really because I felt it was true. Davao is could be the best place to live in.
The natural best are in the city – the Philippine eagle, the waling-waling, the durian, the rambutan, the marang, the green forests, the beaches, name it and some of the best fruits anywhere in the world, or comparable to the best in the world are in the city.
Then, there are the green forests, the beaches, the plantations and the natural endowments of the city.
But the best of all are the people, people who believe in Davao, people who build Davao, people who unite for Davao.
People in Davao come from different places in the Philippines and they have found the city a natural melting pot.
Here is where UBOD comes in, a Filipino word which means the best, for instance, Ubod ng kagandahan, the best in beauty; ubod ng katalinuhan, the best in wisdom. UBOD in this article is also acronym.
First, Davao is UBOD, meaning, U-nited B-elievers O-f Davao. People from all over the Philippines and from many countries in the world are here because they are United Believers Of Davao and its natural goodness.
There are the Lumads. There are the Bagobos. There are the Bilaans. There are the Bicolanos. There are the Boholanos. And Tagalogs. And Pampangos. And Ilocanos. There are Muslims. There are Roman Catholics. There are UCCPs. And Methodists. And Baptists. And Full Gospel. And Four Square.
For these and all who have come to Davao, UBOD can also mean U-nited B-uilders O-f D-avao. United people who believe in Davao put their belief into practice to build of Davao the best city it could possibly be.
That’s how people should be. When the Israelites were in exile in Babylon, they were advised by their God to build the city they were living in presently – plant gardens, get married, build families, pray and do the best they could to make the place they temporarily live become the best.
UBOD can also mean, thirdly, U-nited B-ecause O-f D-iversity. That, I believe, is a general principle of life. When we were young and were going to school, we were taught and we grew up believing that we could be united despite our diversity.
The philosophy of UBOD is different. When UBOD belief is applied, it means that the best of Davao could turn the city into the best in the world when people could unite because of their diverse backgrounds, abilities and natural creativity.
For instance, there is a nice place, make that beautiful place, make that an edenic place, Handumanan, in kilometer 30 in Calinan, which is an UBOD of a place because of how one man, Art Aportadera, has put together the UBOD concept of transforming an ordinary abaca, then coconut plantation into a garden of UBOD beauty.
A walk through portions of the four hectare paradise of a place can be an inspiration to dream and work one’s best to make his or her dream come true. One could be inspired to exclaim, “Blessed are those who dream dreams and work their best come true.”
Indeed, Davao could be a handumanan of beautiful memories of living together. In its wider dimensions, Davao as it is presently is now one the best. It could be UBOD, the best city reminiscent of the Garden of Eden itself!
