By Jan Vicente B. Pekas
We have all come across several kinds of people with authority. Sometimes they are kind and good people, but it’s always a horrible experience under those who abuse their authority and have no idea how to wield it. When I was in early elementary, our principal was someone who could silence a rowdy classroom with just her silhouette across the windows. To this day, I see her still as a personification of authority.
As a principal who sometimes had to be the villain in order to teach and discipline her students, she wasn’t always the unanimous and consistently well-liked teacher by the students. A strict principal will always generate more fear than admiration from young children. She had to do what she had to do, but it was all for the sake of her young and immature students. She was not meant to be the favorite principal of young brats, but someone we all respect now that we are all adults.
As I continue to grow older and older, I am certainly glad she was one of the people who played a part in building me up.
Unfortunately, not everyone is like her, instead they turn crazy with a little bit of power, not being a good role model for the people under them.
As someone still in school, it is inevitable you come across these kinds of teachers, those with no sense, no common sense, and just plain crazy. I’m sure even working people cannot escape these crazy teachers, as crazy bosses may be even more or just as irrational and hard to deal with.
I was taught, since a young age, that these people with authority are meant to be respected and followed. Obedience, after all, is something highly regarded in our society.
But time after time, after being exposed to so many of these adults with power yet still acting like a brat, unable to even make a sound decision, you can’t help but let obedience transform to distrust. Overtime, I have learned that before trusting others, better to trust yourself first, and trust in God more. Think with independence and don’t just take in the words of those with authority without question. No amount of power can justify the wrong decisions of the irrational, no matter how powerful they may be. But with enough learning, anyone can come out with the correct solutions.
This is an unfair world, power and authority is almost always achieved by those who don’t deserve it. That’s why it’s okay and only right to stand up for yourself and seek change in this world. If we do nothing, then nothing will change and nothing will happen. We only remain ever far from an ideal world, not having come even an inch closer.**
