Last, but definitely not the least, I'm reminded of what made our high school journey so special & unforgettable. Let's refresh our memory and reminish those happy moments, such as, house-to-house caroling & gift-giving to a friend or loved one around Christmastime (my sister & Mom used to make kalame ube and suman latik and I shared & delivered it to a special classmate the night before Christmas;) picnicking, following up school projects, or just cutting classes at Bayto River, Bato ni Barang beach, Crasher natural lagoon, and Guisguis where our group ended up picking up lomboy/Filipino black cherries & kasuy/cashew fruits after eating rice & sardines with peasants in their humble nipa hut; serving Mass with our Columban priests in far-flung villages during barrio fiestas which sometimes culminated at swimming in the ocean of West Philippines Sea (formerly known as South China Sea) in Candelaria or Sta. Cruz.
What about the times during junior year when we beat the seniors in basketball & volleyball intramurals, student council election, and won first prize for best & most original Christmas tree? Or, singing Barong Tagalog while wearing one as a sophomore contestant and beating all freshman, junior & senior class solo singers during our school convocation and being sent to Iba, the provincial capitol to represent our school and placing second to Mae of St. Augustine Academy who sang a Filipino aria and became a fellow lead singer & founding member of UST Action Singers, the official singing group of the Catholic University of Santo Tomas during college freshman year. For me, the icing on the cake (thanks to our sophomore Math teacher Mrs. Ponsaran who found the song and let me sing it) was not winning the town fiesta's amateur singing contest later on while belting the same song, but rather reinforcing my love for music to this day by singing lullabies to my granddaughter while putting her to sleep.
How about having your first crush, composing a poem and memorializing it by having it cartographed in Manila and giving it to her in freshman year (although nothing beats your one true love today whom you have shared your matrimonial bed with for 36 years,) getting introduced to smoking for 10 years after puffing your 1st cigarettte stick in high school sophomore year, getting really drunk in junior year, or French kissing & losing your virginity (in your dreams, or maybe in reality) in senior high.
Or, remember your best friends in high school? Our classmates who kept our hormones or sanity intact because we were clueless about what's really happening inside and around us? Some of us were so innocent or naive that we didn't know how to become political that early and manipulate the system or do our bidding. Fortunately, not everyone could be influenced that easily; and those teachers & fellow students whom we thought had done us the greatest good deserve from us, not just a thank you, but also individual gifts instead of class presents, for helping us grow professionally, and as a person, later in life.
(To be concluded in 2021....)
What about the times during junior year when we beat the seniors in basketball & volleyball intramurals, student council election, and won first prize for best & most original Christmas tree? Or, singing Barong Tagalog while wearing one as a sophomore contestant and beating all freshman, junior & senior class solo singers during our school convocation and being sent to Iba, the provincial capitol to represent our school and placing second to Mae of St. Augustine Academy who sang a Filipino aria and became a fellow lead singer & founding member of UST Action Singers, the official singing group of the Catholic University of Santo Tomas during college freshman year. For me, the icing on the cake (thanks to our sophomore Math teacher Mrs. Ponsaran who found the song and let me sing it) was not winning the town fiesta's amateur singing contest later on while belting the same song, but rather reinforcing my love for music to this day by singing lullabies to my granddaughter while putting her to sleep.
How about having your first crush, composing a poem and memorializing it by having it cartographed in Manila and giving it to her in freshman year (although nothing beats your one true love today whom you have shared your matrimonial bed with for 36 years,) getting introduced to smoking for 10 years after puffing your 1st cigarettte stick in high school sophomore year, getting really drunk in junior year, or French kissing & losing your virginity (in your dreams, or maybe in reality) in senior high.
Or, remember your best friends in high school? Our classmates who kept our hormones or sanity intact because we were clueless about what's really happening inside and around us? Some of us were so innocent or naive that we didn't know how to become political that early and manipulate the system or do our bidding. Fortunately, not everyone could be influenced that easily; and those teachers & fellow students whom we thought had done us the greatest good deserve from us, not just a thank you, but also individual gifts instead of class presents, for helping us grow professionally, and as a person, later in life.
(To be concluded in 2021....)
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