(As a guest Speaker on the occasion of Ipil, National High School's Graduation Day, batch 2015)
Thank you for that
heartwarming introduction. I am thankful to all of you, especially to my
mentors who invited me to speak today. Before anything else, I would like to
greet a wonderful morning to Dr. Amelia P. Torralba, Schools Division
Superintendent, Mr. Jerry C. Bokingkito, Surrogate Supervisor, Mrs. Beverly L. Alcoriza,
school principal, faculty and staff, parents, visitors, graduates and to
everyone who are here.
First of all,
congratulations to all of you for a "Job
Well Done". At last, the four
tough years will now come to an end, and I'm sure you are very proud of yourselves for this
accomplishment. Why did I say it was tough? Well, whoever could forget these
experiences; yong di mo alam kong saan ka hihingi o hahanap ng pambayad sa
paaralan dahil wala pang pera si nanay at tatay; yong galit sayo ang mga
kagrupo mo sa isang project kasi di ka pa nakapagbayad, at wala ka talagang
pambayad; yong bumaba ang score mo sa exam dahil hindi ka nakapag-aral
kakapanood mo ng teleerye sa ABS-CBN o GMA; yong di ka makaka get over dahil
naperfect mo ang exam o kayay ZERO ang score mo sa exam; yong sigaw ka ng sigaw
sa klase “Sinong may papel, pahingi!”; yong inspired na inspired kang pumasok
sa paaralan dahil makikita mo na naman ang crush mo na kailanma’y di ka naman
pinapansin; yong pinapapunta sa paaralan ang parents mo dahil meron ka na namang
ginawang kababalaghan; yong mga panahong habang paparating ang iyong
kinakatakotang guro, agad-agad na papasok sa klase, nakaupo, at behave na
behave, kasi takot ka lang palang mapagalitan na naman”; yong paparating si
maam adviser, agad-agad kumuha ng walis at naglinis, sabay greet kay ma’am, “Good
morning ma’am!”(para lang pala mapansin na siyay naglilinis); yong mga panahong
prepared na prepared kana sa quiz at biglang umabsent si ma’am, e di ang saya
ng buong klase, nagpaparty ang mga daga at wala ang pusa; yong halos mamatay ka
na sa kaba dahil magpeperform ka sa stage; yon gang sarap isigaw sa buong mundo
na honor student ka… at marami pang iba. Who could not relate to these
experiences? They might give you wonderful feelings or the opposite, but I’m
sure you will keep them for a lifetime. One day, when you’ll get to remember
those things, you’ll just smile and realize how they helped you become a better
version of yourselves and for sure you learned so much from them.
Well then, may I have the
attention of the proud parents and families of the graduates! Congratulations
ma’am and sir. I salute you for your splendid support and perseverance to let
these young children close another portion of their lives - their high school
life - and prepare for their next steps into a new journey - the college
journey.
(Graduating students, cge nga, lingon muna sa parents ang
families ninyo. Give them a smile and say thank you..very good!....)
I’m definitely sure that
nothing could surpass the happiness and pride you, dear parents, feel today, having
seen your sons and daughters with a big smile on their faces and full of
excitement as they are about to receive their diploma, a visual representation
of the great effort and undertakings they had to survive. I know it’s not yet the end of your support and
perseverance, because these young men and women are just starting to get into
their greatest dream as they will take new steps together with your help to
have a better future. But this event, their commencement day, marks one of your
utmost accomplishments as parents.
To the teachers and staff of this school,
my beloved alma mater, who have been our parents in the classrooms, I salute
you for the time, knowledge, values and expertise that you shared with these
young children. You are the blessing which transformed them into what they are
today. Hindi parin natitinag ang
galing ng mga gurong ito na naging guro ko din while I was here. God knows that
today I’m bringing that gift, being one of your blessed graduates, and I’m sure
these graduates will be telling the same thing in the future. Dear teachers,
congratulations!
So
what’s next? You all exactly know that it’s not yet the ending, but it’s just
the start of a new chapter in the book of your life. Maybe after this very day,
some of you are already planning to work to support your family, some of you
are already thinking as to what course to take in college, and worst, some of
you here are already planning to get married? (Crack jokes here…)
Your
graduation theme, “Hindi natitinag ang pusong Pilipino” is an undeniable fact
that we, Filipinos are tough when it comes to facing trials and challenges.
(Just like the siege in Zamboanga
city, the earthquake in Bohol, the bagyong Yolanda that caused so much
destruction), yet, we survived!!!
Let
me share to you my life experiences which I may say, hindi natitinag ang aking
puso bilang isang Pilipinong mag-aaral… I came from a poor family, and so I
have to work harder to survive especially for my education. With that, I was
able to look for ways and means to overcome the challenges. I was a working
student since third year high school until I graduated college. It was never an
easy task for me. I’ve been through many difficult times. Sometimes I got to
the point of surrendering and my hope to graduate was lost. But then, God is so
good. He gave me people who helped me stay determined and courageous enough.
These people helped me become who and what I am today. Yan ang aking karanasan
na nais kong ibahagi sa inyo bilang gabay sa inyong paglalakbay, na kahit gaano
kahirap ang mga pagsubok na aking napagdaanan, lagi kong isinasaisip na
makakaya ko ang lahat, sapagkat nangingibabaw sa akin ang pagiging pursigido na
makapagtapos ng pag-aaral, at kahit ano mang mangyari, walang sinuman o anumang
bagay ang magsisilbing hadlang sa akin upang abutin ito. I stood firmly with my
principle of not giving up no matter how hard it was. I did not surrender,
instead I strived harder up to the zenith of my capability, and God even
blessed me with more than what I’ve prayed for.
Life
doesn’t follow the plans you layout for yourself. You will all experience the
highs and lows of life, the difficult and easy tasks. I tell you, I’ve been through
many struggles in life. I could even say that I had more difficult times than
the smooth ones. But these experiences were my driving force in achieving what
I have and what God has blessed me today. And I say the same thing for you,
graduates.
Before
I’ll end this opportunity standing before you today, let me leave you important
things to carry home after this ceremony.
Dream! Dream big things and work for them. The obstacle
you may encounter and overcome will be of great help for you to build a
positive future. Don’t give up when trials seem to block you in reaching your
goal. GOD DREAMS WITH and FOR YOU.
Serve! Serve others with all your heart. God will be
happy to see you, doing even little kindness to your neighbor. Your reward will
be a gift which will be more than what you have asked and prayed for.
Have faith! Believe that everything will get better and God
won’t ever leave you behind. He’s just there, the overall manager of your life.
Leave and entrust everything to Him, and your upcoming life will be a life full
of surprises. Indeed, God blesses those who work with profound trust in Him.
And
lastly, allow God to love you! He
knows you by heart.
Congratulations and may God bless you
in your next endeavors! Thank you and good morning once again!
