Being at peace with losing
In every contest, there will always be a winner and there will be losers. In any game or battle, beauty pageants included, one will emerge victorious given the set of regulations and criteria set in determining who is fit to take home the crown. In the case of our Miss Universe 2020 bet Rabiya Mateo, there were stronger contenders who deserve the title.
I am not underestimating the performance of Rabiya. In fact, she competed fiercely and represented our country in the best possible way she could. For that, she deserves our admiration and gratitude. Mishaps and all, Rabiya stood tall and was a forceful candidate to reckon with.
However, it was just not meant to be. I would like to believe that each and every time we pursue something in our lives, it depends if it is really destined for us or not. Otherwise, if it’s possible, we can always try again. Losing does not mean that it is the end of our lives. It is just an outcome of the things we can control and even the things which we cannot control ourselves. That simple.
I simply would just fellow Filipinos to stop the hate culture. Maybe we can’t help but expect and put on the added pressure on our beauty bets after the Pia Wurtzbach and Catriona Gray were crowned as Miss Universe. But we also have to accept the fact that each is her own. Rabiya will never be the next Catriona, because she is her own person. If I were to make these critics shut up, I would just simply ask them to join the pageant and see what their best could do.
This is the kind of toxicity that has consumed our culture as Filipinos. We always have something to complain about and we purposely look for mistakes even the smallest ones just to be able to bring someone down. Instead of looking at the positive and good things in a person, we always focus on the bad side and the mistakes that were committed.
As they say, no one is perfect. We can only give our best shot each and every time, and if our best is indeed unrivalled and outstanding, then our victory is destined for us through our acts and with God’s anointing.
To Rabiya, a woman like me, I celebrate your prowess, your freedom, and your individuality.