“Hope is a Superpower”

Imagine being defined by the worst thing you have ever done.

This is the reality for Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDLs), separated from their families due to incarceration, sometimes for decades, and possibly without assurance of release.

Amidst this darkness, the Philippine Jesuit Prison Service (PJPS) embodies Lux in Domino, light in the Lord, by sponsoring the education of children of PDLs. It is the hope of the PJPS that through this scholarship program, the children will have a brighter future.

On November 5, 2025, my son Liam and I met two of these scholars. The PJPS, in partnership with the Ateneo Grade School, held the Bigay Puso interaction in the Grade 6 classrooms. Together with Liam’s classmates and some of my co-parents, we spent the morning getting to know Gerald and Val.

We started by playing a game to break the ice. We modified the Pinoy game Bahay, Baboy, Bagyo so that whoever is in the “house” needs to answer a question about himself. Not only did the kids have fun running around, but they also found out that Gerald likes adobo, and that Val wants to study Computer Science.

After the game, the students performed a dance number for our guests. Much to everyone’s delight, Gerald and Val joined them on the dance floor and busted a move to a song entitled, “Walang Imposible.” The lyrics sent such a powerful message of hope that I couldn’t help but get teary-eyed watching our sons dance with the scholars, as if encouraging them to get up when life gets them down. “Ano man ang pagsubok, di susuko, alam kong kaya mo.”

This was followed by snack time. The boys sat in a circle on the floor, sharing food and stories. Later in the day Liam would tell me that this was his favorite part of the whole event, because Gerald shared that his father might be released in December. As he asked for prayers for this wish to be granted, I did not even try to hold back my tears anymore.

The magic in giving is that it blesses the giver as much as the one that receives. I told Liam this was my favorite part too, because our class adviser, Mrs. Viola, gave the students and parents a chance to ask questions to our scholars. It was a beautiful way to teach our sons about empathy, kindness, and hope. They got a view of life from the lens of a PDL’s child, and later in their reflection they wrote about how this magnifies their gratitude for family and their many blessings.

The whole experience was a lesson on the power of hope. When there is hope in your heart, you cannot be defeated by life’s hardships. Hope is a superpower because with hope, “Walang imposible.” Not even being reunited with a loved one who was served a death sentence.

It was also a lesson on kindness. One of Liam’s takeaways is that even someone whose loved one is in prison, can be kind. “I guess even a kind person can make bad choices too,” he added.

Hope is a superpower because no matter how sinful we have been, we trust that God’s kindness and mercy can heal and redeem us. Through experiences like this interaction, Ateneo teaches our children about kindness and mercy, too.  And my greatest hope is that when Liam thinks of kindness, he thinks, “Kindness begins with me.”