Obstacles Don't Define Me

          It’s amazing how time flew by so fast. It was only as if yesterday when I first set foot on the edifice of Ilocos Sur National High School. I was just a small, shy and awkwardly social girl then. Who would have thought that I would transform into someone more socialized, hardworking and responsible?

          THIRD GRADING has already ended. Did I use my time as worthwhile as it could be?  Judging from what I have done last Third Grading, it was the hardest in my whole senior life yet. So many activities with so little time to accomplish them, lessons became deeper and harder and outputs and projects all came at once. Even now that I am writing this, I still have a hangover on the intense stress and exhaustion that I have gone through. My head is still aching because of those constant sleepless nights that I have spent in reviewing and in making my assignments. Will this “torture” ever end? Somehow, I think not.

               

             “Education is spending half of your life in figuring out how to waste the other half of your life.”

          I think it goes like that, I’m not sure. The only thing that I really am sure of is that, as I go on my journey in life, problems and challenges will always find a way to get through me.  But I won’t let those impediments define me, I’LL NEVER GIVE UP.

               

             “No matter how hard and which way the wind howls, a mountain cannot bow to it.”

          I have learned a lot this grading period in my ICT class. I was given ideas on how to make my own web design and it made me more creative somehow. I honestly never thought that I will be making something as complicated as making web designs in my whole life. But as I was able to familiarize myself with the different elements of the MS FrontPage, I found out that it wasn’t really as hard as I thought. All you need to have is patience and a whole lot of exploration to make it work.

          Only two months more to go and we will already be graduating in High School. I want to spend every single remaining second in my High School life worthwhile. And I can only do that if I will take my studies seriously and enjoy my time having fun and laughing with my friends. I’ll make every second count.

New Year, New Me!

          A friend of mine greeted me for this new year and she said in her message that I changed a lot compared to who I was before when we were still Juniors. I was so surprised at first because I didn't notice myself changing that much. But then, I realized that I did changed whether unconsciously or not and the problem is, I really don't know what changed in me. And the sad part? I didn't know if that change was good or not. Anyway, I have come to accept the fact. After all, CHANGE is constant. It always happens.
          I am not that fond in reading horoscopes and I don't believe in them either. But for some reason, I checked my horoscope for this year just for the sake of having fun. What I read there was astonishing because it said that I should get ready because I will totally transform this year. Somehow, I believe that a transformation will happen to me, And I'm going to make sure that it will be a positive transformation. I need to act if I want to change for the better.
          They say that each and every one of us has imperfections in life.We hurt people, we make bad decisions, we do a lot of mistakes and, sometimes, we have the tendency to disobey rules. I, for one, am that kind of person. I won't pretend that I am a saint because I think it's true that there's a darkness in my personality sometimes. Sometimes, I do bad things on purpose but most of the bad things I did are done without me meaning to hurt anyone. I did a lot of stupid and bad things last year and I hurt a lot of people including my practice teachers. If only I could turn back time and bring back every terrible thing I did. But sadly, I can't. What's done is done and those mistakes happened for a reason. I learned from them and it made me a better person somehow. Now, I know how to become sensitive of other's feelings.
          It is never too late to change, right? As long as we live, we can change and that is what I intend to do. A new year means a new start. "Bagong taon ay magbagong buhay." New year gives hope and a new life, I have my mistakes that that will serve as a foundation in building a better me.

Love Is All We Need

"Let's sing Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday!
 This season may we never forget the love we have for Jesus
 Let Him be the One to guide us as another new year starts.
 And may the spirit of Christmas be always in our hearts."

         A friend once told me recently that there are two faces behind this event: one is CHRISTmas and the other one is X-mas. Christmas means that we should celebrate this momentous happening with love in our hearts. X-mas, on the other hand, means that we only celebrate this event because we are obliged to. X-mas is for people who don't know how to love while Christmas is for people who are willing to share or sacrifice a part of themselves to others.
          For us Catholics, the main reason why we celebrate Christmas is to rejoice, to welcome the birth of our savior Jesus Christ and to thank the Lord for all of the blessings that He has given to us all throughout the year. As a manifestation to this, we attend "Simbang Gabi" or "Misa de Gallo" , which is also why we SACRIFICE to wake up early to prepare for the birth of Jesus.
         Another good thing about Christmas is that it draws people together. We give gifts to each other and even spare a coin or two for anyone who sings to us. Friends go from house to house to sing Christmas Carols. People from all walks of life donate money, toys, clothes or gifts to the charity. Christmas parties for everyone. People UNITE during Christmas.
          But even though we don't have material things to share to others, there are still things from ourselves that we could share. As an adage goes: "Not all things that glitter are gold." There are things that are much more valuable than any money combined. You have your HEART to give and it will not even cost you a penny.
          "Why don't you give love on Christmas Day?" says a line from a song. It also says that there is no greater gift than LOVE. It's enough to listen to someone who opens up his/her problems. It's more than enough to cry with your friends when they cry. It's comforting to know that someone CARES for you this Christmas.
          It might be quite late for me to post this blog but for me, the Spirit of Christmas is LOVE. And LOVE should be given ANYTIME and ANY DAY of the year at ANY PLACE for EVERYONE. So, EVERY DAY is Christmas. Try to reflect on the last line of the song above: "And may the Spirit of Christmas be ALWAYS in our hearts." :)

Nobody's Perfect

          According to religion, we were all created by God. We were made in his own image and likeness. So, we literally came about in this world as equals. But still, why do most of us act like we are more superior than the others?

          Discrimination has always been a part of our society for as long as I can remember. Rich people eyeing down the poor. Normal people stomping on individuals with disabilities. “Real” men bullying gay men. “Real” women criticizing lesbians. “Beautiful people” laughing at the faces of ugly ones…. The list can go on. Frustrating but true, no?

          Have you ever turned a corner without seeing someone being judged because he/she acts differently than the others? Or because he/she doesn't define what others might call as “normal”? I mean, discrimination is everywhere. It’s like the moon following you at night wherever you go. You can’t hide nor run from it.

          But, even the moon disappears in the sky when the sun comes out. Just like the moon, discrimination can disappear if we can all fill our heads with sufficient light that can overcome the darkness inside. We only criticize other people because our brains are filled with thoughts that we are better than the rest. We need something that can clear our head from thinking so.

          How? Just start from accepting the fact that nobody's perfect. We make mistakes. Superheroes cry. Clowns cry. Soldiers get scared. Even models get insecure. No matter how "normal" we think we are, we still have weaknesses and disabilities. So you see? We are no better than the rest. Start accepting and loving people for who they really are. By doing so, we will be able to see that all of us are the same. "We breathe the same air", as others might say.

TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More)

          Life is a matter of choice between good and bad. In everything that we do, there will always be advantages and disadvantages. In everything that we do, do we always consider to think for a moment about the consequences that our actions might bring? Or do we just instantly do things without even thinking about how it will affect our life or the lives of other people?
         Change is inevitable. We change through the things that we learn, through our own experiences and through our own desires and intentions. Like right now, you find yourself as a young and healthy person and the next thing you know, you're already slowly getting old.
          What was once a life of simplicity now becomes a life of luxury. We discover things that help improve our lives and in these breakthroughs, we also learned to ignore the cries of our Mother Earth. We have turned a blind eye about what really matters the most. We have been destroying our own source of life, our environment.

          Now, we can see the horrific consequences of our actions. Storms become stronger, tsunami waves occur more frequently, strong earthquakes from all over the world shake and destroy the foundations of our buildings, homes and infrastructure, animal species' extinction and death of a lot of human beings. Will we wait for the time that the HUMAN RACE will turn extinct?
          We are aware of the fact that we contribute a lot in causing Climate Change but why do we not do something to at least help in recovering what has been before?
          We can help in our own little ways. Plant trees, conserve energy, don't burn plastics and throw our wastes properly. After all, what's the cause of majority of flooding here in our country? Is it not because of the garbage that we throw on the rivers? Along the streets? In our own backyards? Is it not because of the endless illegal cutting of the trees in our forests and mountains? What's the cause of Climate Change? Is it not because of our own lack of discipline?
           We need to CHANGE immediately so as not to SUFFER more. We need to change for the coming generation. WE can make a big difference in this world.
           There's this adage that says: "Together, everyone achieves more." And this is so true. If we only work hand in hand to heal the world, it is not impossible to achieve our common goal: "To live life to the fullest in the lands of a better world."

"Heal the world, make it a better place
 For you and for me
 And the entire human race.
 There are people dying
 If we care enough for the living.
 Make a better place
 For you and for me."
         

Make The Most Out Of It

          This grading has been, by far, a very busy one. I was seldom present in my classes. I was out of the classroom most of the time because of extra-curricular activities that I barely had the time to cope with our lessons.
          That's why in the few times that I was present in my classes, I always make sure to pay attention and participate in discussions actively. This second grading has been a tough one but despite the busy schedule, I have learned a lot. You can't gain anything from nothing right?
          First and foremost, I have learned to make every second count. Time is important, right? So, I valued my time a lot to make up for the times that I was out in my classes.
          Second, I realized that rushing my projects doesn't really help in making the project better. We only worked on our project in ICT a day before the deadline so we practically just rushed it without even thinking about what would it end up to be. The outcome was good but if we only worked on it earlier, I know that it will have been the best that it could be. So, next time, I will be making my projects with sufficient time for me to make some improvements.
          Third, I have learned to navigate my search engine better. I have also learned about HTML documents and HTML tags. I also learned how to make and improve the appearance of an HTML file. I gained more knowledge about the different kinds of tags. I also got to use my Notepad now that I know how to use it and now that I know its importance.
           As I have said earlier, you can't gain anything from nothing. There would still be impediments as we go on our journey. My problem this grading period is how to cope with my lessons since I'm mostly out of my classes. It's hard to keep up with the lessons especially if there are quizzes that I have missed during my absence.
           So, when the contest that we've been practicing for was already finished, my schedule at my classes is now back to normal. In order for me to understand the lessons, I have asked the help of some of my classmates. I asked them to teach me the lessons that I have missed and I also borrowed their notes. I also took up special quizzes for the ones that I haven't taken up.
          Until now, I'm still coping with my lessons and making up for the lost time. Moving on, I will do my best this coming third grading so that my grades will improve because I have a feeling that my grades will become lower this second grading. I have to make the most out of all my subjects.

Global Competence

         Imagine a world which has different countries and diverse languages and then, there's no medium for us to be able to understand each other. Will there be unity? Will we be able to promote friendship among our countries? Will there be OFWs to work for their families?
         The existence of our universal language, English, is very much important to all of us. English language is used in business, science, mathematics, communication, economics... the list can go on and on. Pretty much everything that is connected to our lives involves the use of English.
          There is no denying the fact that many Filipinos are aspiring to go to other countries to "seek for greener pasture." This situation now comes the role of English to our lives. One of the requirements for us to accomplish if we want to go abroad is that we should at least learn how to speak in English.