November 28, 2011- the day we had our CAE Prejudging. We came to school earlier than many even though we were the last to present. All of us were nervous that morning. We watched the CAE plays of the first years but our minds were on our play in the afternoon. Our challenge was to do better than our Technical Dress Rehearsal. We had better production design. Most of the characters improved. We rushed during the preparation. Some props were even made on the day itself. Of course, cram again.
We enjoyed while presenting onstage. For me, we did all our best. Yes, we had flaws. But I believe each play has its own flaws in some ways. We cannot hinder mistakes to be done. All of us were filled with joy right after the play. Once the curtains closed, we hugged each other congratulating each one. We admit that we had a few regrets. We could have done more if we wanted to.
And right after we presented, they announced the results of the winners for the first year and the second year. It was such a heart break! Nice playing with emotions, huh?! A minute before we jumped for joy, and in a snap, we all saw tears on the faces of each one. It did not take even five minutes for us to know the results. The question was: Was our best not good enough?
Our best was not good enough to reach the ultimate.
Our best was not good enough to meet the criteria of the judges.
Our best was not good enough to compete with the higher levels.
BUT…
Our best was good enough to bring joy in our section for the past three months.
Our best was good enough to showcase the hidden talents of each one.
Our best was good enough to make other people realize that silent and simple people have God-given talents within.
Our best was good enough to know each of our classmates better.
Our best was good enough to strengthen our bond as a class.
Our best was good enough to fill the empty spaces in our hearts with love for each of the people who opened their doors to help us.
Time went so fast that after a few weeks of preparation and practice, we had our CAE Technical Dress Rehearsal last November 18. Most of our props and costumes were made in a rush. As I stepped inside the classroom early that morning, everyone was busy. Most of my classmates were going to and fro, asking questions and clarifications. Our schedule was still in the afternoon but the hairdos were done in the morning. As for the costume of the guards, we cut the cloth into pieces that day also. So I called it cram. Fortunately, most of our subjects in the morning were given for preparation, except for Biology. I understand that we should also catch up in other subjects.
While preparing, I remembered that I have not memorized one part of my lines. I was wearing my costume and makeup but the most important thing that I should do, or shall I say- I should have done before, was missing. I did not memorize my lines intentionally. I memorized them because of regular practices. And I ended up deciding to adlib. Of course I did not tell our directress about this or she’ll get mad. Before the TDR, I rested in the classroom and retouched my makeup. I did not really feel nervous compared to my other classmates.
One the things a section must not forget before starting the TDR is prayer. As usual, we had a company call for prayer and then we started. It went fine (Define fine). The technical for me was neat. A few mistakes but that’s part of it. I mean, we cannot get rid of mistakes. There was one time the music was late so good thing our characters know how to adlib. Of course, some forgot a few of their lines (that includes me). Here is the funniest thing ever happened in the TDR! We had this banquet scene and so food was the star in that scene. Everyone onstage did not hesitate to get some (count me in). And because we were too stunned with the taste of the food, we almost forgot that we still have to go on with the play. We were delivering our lines with our mouths full of food. I don’t what happened but I forgot to give the pendant to one character and in the banquet scene, the king will find out that the pendant was lost. My eyes opened very wide and I quickly got the pendant and threw it at the side. People at the backstage laughed at what I did. And I said my lines with cheese sticks in my mouth.
The TDR, as a whole, was a success. Although we had some things to improve on like voice projection, characterization and annunciation, I was happy with the outcome. Thanks to the critic, Mr. Joseph Albana for helping us to improve our play. Hopefully, on Monday (our pre-judging), there will be an improvement on our performance. Good luck to us!
A group of students were discussing a picture of a family. In the picture, one little boy had a different hair color compared to the other family members.
“Why do you think that his hair color is different?” asked the teacher.
“Maybe he is adopted?” suggested the boy.
A little girl said, “I know all about adoptions because I am adopted.”
“What does that mean to be adopted?” asked another child.
“It means,” said the girl, “that you grew in your mother’s heart instead of her tummy.”
From October 28 to 30, that is three days, I attended the Regional Science Olympiad and Congress. With me were eleven other high school students namely Rae, Hannah, Krizza, Felise, Dymphna, manangs in the 3rd year: Jessica, Yanny, Kylie, and 4th year: Nina, Justine and Mocha. Meet new friends, learn new stuff and have fun were the top three things we did.
We spent most of the time under the heat of the sun. Some of the games we played were Egg Relay, Catapult, Tug-of-War, and Mechanical Arm, modified pass the Message, Super Bakya or Kadang-kadang, and Human Circuit. We also answered Science-related questions. We also had Lecture and Quiz Bee per year level. And four of us participated in the Super Quiz Bee by schools. As of now, we don’t know the final and official results but hopefully we made it to the top 5. I missed the parade and pledge ceremony but according to the campers who attended, the parade was the best time to make friends with other schools.
The AC 3rd year campers enjoyed making friends with the Sun Yat Sen learners. The three-day Science Camp was exhausting but fun. I met new friends coming from the province of Guimaras, Antique, Capiz, and towns of Dingle, Dumangas and many more.
On the third day, I did not join in the games anymore. Instead, I stayed in our quarter and slept. I did not have a good sleep the previous night because the last program, Scientist Look-Alike Pageant, ended twelve midnight. Plus, I slept past two o’clock because I ran out of water for bath. That means I slept without taking a half bath (Yucky, right). My body was sticky and I felt warm. I only had about an hour of sleep because I woke up and immediately took a bath by 4:30 in the morning.
By the end of the day, I felt totally tired and sleepy. Upon reaching home, I took a nap.
10.) She makes sure that I am okay through texting.
9.) She is eager to know more about me not through slow and secret discovery but direct and straightforward questions such as, “What are your hobbies?” and “I notice you always buy C2. Is that your favorite drink?”
8.) She checks on me and makes sure that I am safe.
7.) She is willing to love what I love and learn to like what I like.
6.) She is willing to wait for half an hour just to see and talk to me.
5.) She means what she says and says what she means: “I love you, Bes!”
4.) She shares to me her dreams about me, experiences when she was young, and goals she wants us to fulfill together.
3.) She understands and accepts me for who I am: silent, quite shy and sometimes snobbish.
2.) She knows and senses whenever I have problems. Once she finds out that I am not okay, she goes near and comforts me.
And the number 1 thing (the creepiest but most interesting) I like about my best friend is that:
1.)She once sensed that I went to this particular place and her instinct was correct. I really went to that place. COOL HUH!?
“Whenever I look at my palms, I wonder which of those cute, funny criss-cross lines made me so lucky that I met you.”
-October 14, 2011
“The most wonderful gift from Lord… my Isza!!! Do you know her? She changed my life!”
-October 16, 2011
“I love her more than anyone else. If I’m not mistaken, I love her more than my life. I will do everything just to make her happy. Words are not enough to let her know how much I love her!”
-October 16, 2011
Believe me. These words came from the heart of my best friend.
I was seven years old when we went to Boracay Island. Since it was my first time to travel for more than three hours, the excitement I felt awakened me four o’clock in the morning. We only drank a glass of Milo and left the house. I only changed clothes but I did not take a bath. We traveled for almost five hours. When we arrived in Boracay, we first searched for a place, hotel or cottage, to stay in for the next three days. Since it was summer, almost all hotels were fully booked. We stayed in Casa Pillar. We enjoyed our stay there. My love for the beach caused me sunburn. We went home with our helpers teasing us as aetas.
Every single day, we come across several people. May it be in school or not. Different people may come our way and then we make friends. But what is unusual and rare in this instance we all undergo everyday in our lives? That is, building friendship- deeper friendship- with a person you did not expect to enter your life. At first, both of your pathways intersected. Then, something in the complex neurons in your brain tells you to go near her. After a while, you realize that there is something different about her that triggers you to take a break and chat with her. Then as time passes by, you both become closer than before to the extent of becoming best friends.
Before she became my best friend, she was a total stranger to me. Okay, I saw her along my way and then that was all. A few years passed and I seemed to notice her most of the time. It did not take a long time when we finally had short conversations about simple things. Then, it slowly developed into having deeper topics such as about one’s self, likes and dislikes, and all the rest. “I want to know you better. What are your favorite foods and what are your hobbies?” she asked once. It all started there. I lived my life the usual way, wake up, go to school and learn, have some fun, go home and do homework, so on and so forth. Then here comes an investigator of my life, making me feel that I am missing something. I am missing something very important and that made me feel incomplete.
“I want… I want you to… be my…best friend,” she said at last. I was speechless. I was shocked that I cannot respond to the things she said. No one… not one has ever said this to me. She was the first who told me that. Coming from a friend I did not expect to be close with, everything in my mind changed. I had to make a decision. Will I say YES or reject this offer? I was having second thoughts. If I will accept it, I will have to accept also that time will come she will leave me. If I will reject, that means I might be missing the chance of being the luckiest person in the world for having a best friend like her. “She could be the one of the missing pieces,” said my mind. It ended with a YES. And there she is, my best friend.
So far, I am enjoying her company. I love her so much that we say it to each other more than twice in day. We only have a little time being together. When we have the chance to be with each other, we grab it like there is no tomorrow. When I am with her, we can talk about anything. I can share what I feel and I am free to say and do anything while I am with her. She knows several things about me and so do I. As much as possible, I want her to be my first and last best friend. After a month, I came to a conclusion that she is really one of the missing pieces. One of the missing pieces I never knew I would find from her.
My Journalism class in first year high school was mainly about creative writing. This year, it focuses more on journalism specifically the newspaper. This is not new to me the fact that I encountered journalism and things about newspapers before. The new thing to me is, honestly, the teacher and the things he brings with…things which are not visible to the eyes or even under an electron microscope. In short, the lessons, his knowledge of several things beyond compare all the trivia he knows which I and my classmates do not.
First Quarter is over and yes, second quarter is nearly ending. My mind is filled with a lot of information- Ah! Information overload. NOOOO!!! Honestly, I had a lot of unforgettable moments in our Journalism class. I did not say good memories only, which means that includes bad ones. I have to admit that life is hard with a teacher having high standards which leads to expecting a lot from a student (or students). That means I have to do well in things, but if I fail then… wish me luck.
Every class discussions, I always look forward to mind-feeding activities especially those related to vocabulary-building, though that is not my specialty… and certainly not my cup of tea. There are times when we really enjoy our teacher’s company. There are times when we get to have what he calls ‘a dose of medicine’. Of course, this is caused by misbehavior.
Recently, we did not have a very nice class. We arrived late in class and so, it did not turn out nice. Most of the time, I really enjoy our Journalism class. There is always something new. Maybe one thing I will always remember is that we start the class either with a personal prayer, frequently led by Steffi, or a short video clip when we at an audio-visual room. There are still thing to look forward this school year in our Journalism class.
I always think of my family being such a blessing I cannot live without. It is because they have been with me all my life. They support me in everything I do. My parents, Isagani and Zarlina Cuello, are always there whenever I need them. My sister, Jessica, who is only a year ahead of me, is like my friend. Honestly, I do not call her ‘manang’ though she wants me to because of the short gap. And my younger brother, Jancris, is the joy-giver in the family. He is now ten years old and should be in the fourth grade already, but because of Down syndrome, he still acts younger than what he should be.
I cannot clearly tell why family is different from others the fact that I never had another family. They are the only family I have aside from the one in school. I enjoy being with them especially during weekends. We would have our breakfast in the garden once in a while. We are all seated at the round table, listening to music while enjoying the food. During lunch, we would have a family-sized coke or a good-for-the-family ice cream for desserts, which makes my day. Unfortunately, we can only have this sort of a family day only on Sundays since my mother is taking her second master’s degree at Ateneo de Manila University. She leaves the province Friday every week and comes back either by Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning. That means, we should cherish every Sunday.
What I like most about my family is that they are the ones willing to hear like the ‘how’s school’ things. Frankly speaking, it somehow irritates me but I know they find me very silent at home like I do not speak at all that’s why they ask me those things. They would ask me what are the recent events happened in school, how this person is now, and stuff that would make me say, “Everything’s fine. I will just say things if they are such a big deal”. Another thing, they are the ones willing to spend some time like watch movies after lunch, go to the mall or even spend some holidays in Bacolod to visit the ruins of one mansion. It is so ironic that we, the daughters, are the ones having no time for breaks because of so many assignments, activities and events to look forward to. I hope that someday, these things will happen even just once.
I am so proud and happy to have this link of family. i know that there are several things our family has which cannot be found in others.
I set the alarm at 4 o’clock in my phone the night before, yet my body clock woke me up at around 3:45 in the morning of that Friday. I took my phone and sent the message I saved in the drafts folder to this person- this friend. In less than 3 minutes, she replied and said she is thankful for the greeting. We had an exchange of text messages for about twice and she told me to go back to sleep for it was very early. I just closed my eyes until five. As I was trying to fall asleep, I imagined how good and fun the day will be the moment I step in the school.
And the day was starting to be what I wanted it to be- fun all the way with no stress and disappointment. I greeted her for the second time, but this time, in person. I hugged her so tight a she thanked me again for the greeting and as I greet her again. My former classmates, the MICHAELITES, were telling me that they are getting more excited as the time passes. I rushed to every second year classroom to check if my former classmates were there. I asked them to sign in one black cardboard by lunchtime. By afternoon, we ran to the classroom and packed our things, ran down to the ARC and met with my former classmates. We waited for almost half an hour just to greet her as a whole family. We went to the door next to her table at the Faculty room. With the surprise appearance of her former ‘daughters’ and a background music, I Swear, we all had a little but, for me, special reunion. We gave the cake and for the best part, the frame, which she thought when seeing the back part was a painting. It was so special to me that I almost shed a tear seeing some of them crying. I gave my former sisters a hug and we started reminiscing the fun moments we had the previous year. We ate a part of the cake with our bare hands as the knife and spoon. We spend some minutes of chatting of how our lives have been this second year. It was nice seeing their faces again after some time. We parted ways with hugs and kisses, as usual. We all greeted her just like the previous year. We surprised her, the same as last year. We, again, had a good time just like the days we missed. We pleased her heart with simply with our greetings and presence. Yet it was a big thing… it was something special… something to cherish. And you know her, the birthday celebrator every August 19 of the year aside from Mr. Romero and other people- MRS. SARDUA.
I am currently at the stage of exam rush ( as I call it). I spent the whole weekend finishing my projects and cramming for mastery tests. And now I am suffering the consequences of having manana (man ya na) habit.
Tonight is the night I will keep vigil just to finish reading and jotting down notes on Statistics, CLE and Soc. Stud. And the final judgment on how worthy my staying up late is will be on the day I will see my exam scores and receive my report card.
BTW August 26, 2011- report card day a.k.a.my judgment day and HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELISSA!!!
What a perfect beginning of the month! After a very frustrating June ( though it is my birth month), I had a taste of a relaxing and positive first-day-of-July.
I was silent upon entering the classroom and as I stepped inside, though hurriedly, I felt something that triggered me. Something that gave a sign of an occurence of something I have been looking for... something I've been longing for.
And yes... yes it did happen! The thing I've been waiting for has finally come. I've been prolonging this agony of waiting for things to happen. But then, all the sorrow just vanished away like dust blown by wind. With a simple step forward... an approach, everything changed. I began to smile. My heart became so light that I felt like I was floating on air due to an undescribable bliss. I remember the days when the chance was right in front of me, yet I ignored it, I waited for it to fade.
Wonderful things have been happening throughout the morning. And then strikes the afternoon I have been waiting forward. The climax of the day has occured. I can't find the words to describe what I was feeling. My heart seemeed so heavy but suddenly lightens. What I know was that, that day was one of the many days of my life that I will never ever forget. That day, for others may not be, was perfect for me.
Yesterday, I was thirteen, now I turned fourteen. Today is the 26th day of June and it is written on my birth certificate. Usually, there is nothing so big deal when it is the day before my birthday, but yesterday was really something. Aside from having a pre-celebration together with my family, I also experienced a last minute pain. We were at the Jaro Cathedral to attend the anticipated Saturday Mass. The last time I entered the cathedral was last year's Centennial Celebration, so when I went inside, I was, as usual, amazed by its beauty especially the statues of various male saints and the paintings at the ceiling. And every time I enter the place, everything seems so solemn. There I predicted that even though I am not with my friends in any of my birthday celebration, this day will be unforgettable.
The Mass has started and we were already singing the Gloria when I saw a white thing moving on the floor beside the pew where we were seated. The people near that side looked at the white thing. I was curious so I also gazed. There I found out that it was not a "moving thing" but a lame boy. I bet he was near my age or even more. He went forward and approached a woman, asking for alms. He stretched out his hand with a slipper. Yes, a slipper. Instead of his feet wearing a pair of slippers, his hands were the ones using them. Luckily, the woman gave him a penny of an amount which I don't know. Then he went back to the side of our pew and asked the old-aged couple for any amount of money. Again, he was given. At that time I was thinking that he will soon come to me for I was just a few centimeters away from the couple ( actually my sister was nearer to them ). As expected, he came to me crawling. I wasn't surprised, but terrified, like the last time I entered that place, when there was a girl also came to us. He stretched his hand to me, yet I looked straight at the altar. I can say some people at my back saw him and what I did. Then my mom poked my dad telling to give the boy money. My dad immediately gave a five-peso coin. Then, that was the time I looked at him. He balanced the coin on the slipper and used his other hand to get it and placed it inside his pocket. I looked at his eyes. After that, I refused to look straight at him again. In his eyes I saw the pain and the burden he has been experiencing. Those pitiful eyes touched me. If only I brought with me my coins, I would never ever hesitate to give him some. There, I caught myself not concentrating to the Mass.
After receiving the coin, I thought he will leave and proceed to other Mass-goers. But no. He didn't. The old woman tapped his shoulder and whispered something to him. Of course I didn't hear a thing, but I can infer that the woman told him to stop going around and stay in one place for awhile. That is because that boy sat at the side of the pew in front of us. And that disturbed me more from listening to the readings. He has a wound near his left eye because he has a makeshift bandage using a white cloth. His feet were like of the Chinese women having lotus feet. They were small and I am sure they had stopped growing. My sister told me that there's a term for the act of the 'sindikato' making the feet of the children turn like the ones of the boy. The priest who I knew and met a year ago was having his homily already when I saw the boy gazing from side to side. He looked at one of the flat screens hung on the pillars of the cathedral. He was resting for a while when he decided to leave. I did not see him after he left. I thought he will come back, but he didn't. The Mass has ended and so we went out. I looked around and saw no sign of him. There were no more beggars outside. Perhaps because it was already past six. I was really eager to know where he went. Maybe he has some friends with him and they searched for shelter. Or maybe he has a family. Or maybe... I hope not... he went to the 'sindikato' to give the money he earned from begging. I hope he didn't. And I hope what my sister said about those 'sindikato' is not true at all. We already reached home after eating in a restaurant, yet his eyes kept on flashing back in my mind. Those pitiful eyes.
My last day being a thirteen year old girl has left a memory in me. And I am sure that this will not just vanish in my mind nor in my heart right away. The, in fact, will leave a scar in my heart. It was just an instant where my eyes meet the ones of a poor boy, probably of my age. That was all. An instance common to all. An instance where one ignores a hand of the poor. " Love the least, the last, and the lost," that's what Fr. Nathaniel ( the celebrant) mentioned in his homily. Now, I always think of him... of his condition and his future. I hope to see him again the next time I go to the Cathedral. And I hope to see him better than yesterday.
