WHY?

Dear Mouse,

My “admirer” asked me why I defended and am still defending Patricia Evangelista who they labeled as irresponsible journalist.

She/he wrote

Yeah, blind allegiance. "No matter what,I'll be there for you..." Is that what you will do for Patricia Evangelista? I would expect that you will stop defending her... Maybe your ego is too big to give up defending Pat? Now,you are playing on emotions... "Go get them, girl"... and other "you can do it" rhetorics. Why not accept the fact that Pat Evangelista has blundered?

I will give two good reasons:

1.She is an inherently good person. She e-mailed me the apology and an article that I could have easily used in my blog in order to get the “Scoop of the Week” . She trusted me even she didn’t know me from Adam.

2. I like her cause of giving honor to the lesser known heroes.

Her point still stands regardless of the Faye hoax.. Give equal recognition to people whose achievements bring honor to the country.

This excerpt of the apology that she e-mailed to me and that is now published in the website of Bread of Life of Ministries tells more of Patricia as a person.

Yes,my dear Anonymous, between Filipino crabs like you and Patricia, I will take her anytime.

I personally went to see Ms. Patricia Evangelista and her parents to inform them of the fraud we were all led to believe and to apologize for the damage her belief in Faye’s story could do to her reputation as a writer. Out of the nobility of her heart and the idealism of her youth, she wrote Faye’s story based on her personal interview. All she wanted was to inspire her readers to make a difference in our country.

Before I met Mr. & Mrs. Evangelista, I had the least idea what kind of people they were, to be able to raise up such a spirited and brilliant daughter with a heart for our country. After our discussion, I discovered their secret. These are parents of character. They are people who do not only think of the good of their daughter but the greater good of others. Right away, Patricia decided to face the issue squarely. Her cause of making known unsung heroes who truly bring honor to the country still stands. More than anything else, I saw her genuine concern for her readers. She wanted the truth out even if it would mean painfully declaring that she too was defrauded. Her response reminded me of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If.”

If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,Or being hated. don’t give way to hating,And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

The Ca t