I’M a fan of Kung Fu Panda and the silence about a fourth sequel is driving me nuts. The wait for any confirmation of its coming is taking so long, all I can get from the web are rumors and speculations.
Kung Fu Panda 3 was released in 2016, that’s six long years ago. The first grader who must’ve laughed his heart out over the antics of Po’s adoptive dad Mr. Ping will be entering Junior High School very soon, and still there is no verified word about the film. And yes, I’m ranting.
To keep me entertained, I watch the three sequels over and over again and only have awe for the writers of this animated films. The wisdom of Master Oogway and Master Shifu are priceless and yet delivered in such a loveable film with the most unlikely star — a panda. Fluffy, clumsy, loveable, always hungry, chosen as the Dragon Warrior.
In the days approaching my birthday, the quote by Master Shifu keeps on replaying in my mind. As a backgrounder, when I resigned and opted to leave the stress-filled challenging job of an editor-in-chief and put journalism on the shelf as a memento of a past life, I was looking forward to just write, not as a journalist, but as a writer in all its forms and disciplines. But here I am, being asked to do things I’d rather not, but only because it seems that no one else within my circle and community seem willing to take on.
My friends are everywhere, supportive by not just giving me a hand but also giving me resources. But no one wants to take the lead. I am on my own. Writing is what I have honed and writing is what I planned on doing towards my twilight years. But life is telling me, twilight is still far away, you have to do more than just write.
I don’t like. I’m also old enough to know that what one likes and what one has to do are not always in harmony, but there will be actions we have to take but not necessarily like because of an underlying desire. Fact, I like writing, but I also desire to help. To physicalize that desire to help, I need to do something I don’t like, something like marketing, selling, promoting. So here I am, nearer senior citizenship than debut pondering on what is life while Master Shifu’s words play on repeat: “If you only do what you can do, you’ll never be more than you are.”
It was Master Shifu telling Po to stop tarrying and start teaching. A stern warning to get out of one’s comfort zone and just be.
I want to protest, but I’m old enough to know protesting doesn’t work. The secret to becoming is in the doing.
Thus from Master Shifu, the scene turns back to Mr. Ping revealing the secret ingredient in his secret ingredient soup that has customers asking for it over and over again.
“The secret ingredient of my secret ingredient soup.... The secret ingredient is ... nothing... To make something special you just have to believe it’s special,” Mr. Ping said. For indeed, there is no secret that has not been divulged a long time ago. But we prefer to believe there is one, and so we cannot break into the wisdom, the deep knowledge and unlimited power of what has always been within us. It was never kept a secret, we just refused to believe and in the process gave up our birthright. saestremera@gmail.com