Your Life In Exchange for 650 Million Pesos. Deal? Or no deal?

As I write this, the entire country sits and patiently waits for the draw of the Grand Lotto 6/55 where one can become an instant half-a-billionaire; the pot is now at a ridiculously unbelievable amount of 650 million pesos.

All the Lotto outlets in all the malls that I've been frequenting for the last three weeks are never without long lines of people trying their luck, some even have sheets of numbered papers that they use to choose the number combinations.  It is fascinating to see people of all genders, sizes and shapes, come together for one common goal -- to get rich instantly.

It is even more interesting to find out (through the social networking sites that I maintain) that even the rich and famous celebrities are also agog over the pot of gold.  Ruffa Gutierez, in her tweet last Friday, sent her driver to look for a Lotto outlet in Makati.  She was near hysterics when they realized that there aren't any Lotto outlets in the area as I surmised through this tweet from the actress/beauty queen:  "We have dreams too, you know???" 

I'm sure you do, Ruffa.

I share in everyone's excitement to find out who will be the lucky instant millionaire.  Someone's life is about to change in a few hours and I can't wait to find out who that person will be.  What would you do when you suddenly become the rightful owner of over half a billion pesos?  What would I do?

I remember being asked this question two years ago.  I was contemplating on joining a TV game show where all you had to do was choose a briefcase and wish that you do not open the one with the jackpot in it.  My boss asked me what would I do with the 2million prize if I manage to avoid it after 23 briefcases.

I had no idea!  I was completely clueless.  I realized then that I was not prepared to own that amount of money.  And we were only talking about a couple million pesos then.  Multiply that 325 times and then ask yourself, what would I do with 650 million pesos?  Buy a town perhaps?

So I am thinking now, instead of focusing on the prize, why don't we focus on the race?  Is that not more important than coming up with the perfect number combination that just might change your life forever? 

With these in mind, I realized that I have never heard of anybody who won the lottery and went on

to live a "happily ever after" kind of life.  Although the lack of media coverage does not necessarily mean that they do not exist.  I suppose the stories of rags-to-riches-to-rags-again attract more viewers and sponsors than the former, so....

And it is true.  More than a handful lotto winners enjoyed their winnings for a maximum of 24 months (on the average) and then went back to become doubly poorer than they were before.  I remember one ex-winner who lived in a hotel for months on end, built rows and rows of apartments for leasing, put up a restaurant business, and bought everything that his wife and kids asked from him.  He was sharing his blessings to everyone that claimed to be his relative or friend, he took pity on people who came to his house and asked to be lent some money.  He was quick to trust and felt guilty when he tried saying "no" when asked for financial help.  

He could not fathom how, in a little less than two years, he finds himself and his family sharing a small shanty with his brother, with hardly a bowl of soup for breakfast.  He lamented on his fate.  To the point where he wished that he never won the lottery at all.  He was fine with his meager lifestyle before he became a millionaire.  What makes him more miserable now is the fact that he already knows how the good life tasted.  He was given everything he ever wanted and more, only to become the poorest man he has ever known in his life.

Could this be the result of unpreparedness for the fact that in case you do win the lottery, you also become a million times responsible for how the fortune affects your life?  If you receive a "windfall", do you remain standing, or do you get "blown out proportion" and you no longer realize what ever it was that hit you?

This leads me to believe that this could also be the reason the pot has not had a single winner even after a couple of draws.  There may not be anybody out there fit to own the prize.  And this may be a good thing for everyone.

This "responsibility" goes back to the body that is hosting the raffle.  After all, they are the ones who created this ferment.  I think that before they excite the public with the one in two million possibilities of becoming a multi-millionaire, they should set the minds of the people that owning such amount of money is not as easy as most of us would like to believe.  And that winning the prize, may also be as good as losing it... and more.

Who wouldn't want to live a happy and fulfilled life?  Of course all of us could use some money that can help us jumpstart our mediocre lifestyles.  There will always be something in amazon.com that we will want to buy but somehow, could never afford.  That if we only have a little more than what we already have, we will finally be happy and contented.  

Think of one person, except those born with a Reed and Barton in their mouths, that did not have to work hard to be able to live the life that he deems "happy and fulfilling".  

Manny Pacqiuao had to get himself beaten to a bloody pulp before he got Jinkee that nose (and a mansion in California, and wherever else there are mansions and estates for sale).

Henry Sy was a shoe shine boy before becoming the richest man in the Philippines, owning 33 branches of SM Malls and BDO-Equitable PCI Bank.

The owner of Jollibee, the Philippines' largest fastfood chain (the only one that gave McDonalds a run for their money) started out with just two ice cream parlors in Metro Manila.

Charice Pempengco and her mom hardly had enough to pay their rent before becoming the international singing sensation that she is now.

Regine Velasquez used to watch television through a neighbor's window as her parents' sari-sari store could not afford to get them their own TV set.

All of them are enjoying the fruits of their labors now.  And we all know that their fortune did not happen overnight.  

And neither will ours be.  

Like them, we will have to work hard for our dreams and desires.  We will have to shed blood, sweat, and tears.  And sometimes, even with all these, we will still feel that there is so much more that we want but could never have.  But when we finally reach out for our prize, we will be ready and able.  The beatings and humiliations and hardships that we encountered along the way, were all meant to prepare us for the responsibilities of being given more.  And we realize that what ever we have, no matter how big or small, is exactly what we deserve.

Another notable thing is the fact that when you worked hard for something, you see it for its value rather than for its price tag.  And so you take good care of it because you know that you earned it, rather than won it.  The sense of responsibility is stronger because you see your involvement in the realization of the dream, rather than the word LUCK written all over your properties.

If only we would realize how big a responsibility it is to have more money than you can spend, I am sure the lines at the lotto outlets will be so much shorter, and the media coverage a lot lesser.  


None of these are discussed in the promotion of the raffle draw.  There are no clauses that say: "with great powers come great responsibilities".  You are left to deal with hundreds of millions of pesos on your own...and all the people who claim to be your friend or relative.

I hope that who ever wins the pot, realizes that along with his wealth is the choice to either let it change his life forever, or not.  

Ironic as it may seem, the winner, will be needing a lot of grace. Period.