Hardwork Pays Off

"Don't wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more and more successful."

- Mark Victor Hansen

High School huh?

As anyone would say, it's the best part of a student's life, I am no exception to that.

It just started with a simple dream.

A dream of being a student in Alabel National Science High School, the Regional Science High School for Region XII. And that dream came true. I passed the entrance exams, and even topped once.

I have already mentioned what my life was like as a student in AlSci in my previous post Buhay AlSci.

For the first three years, just like other students, I had difficulties adjusting and adapting to the new environment, new peers, new teachers, everything's new. Hence, I got used to it as time passed by.

As a Science High School student, we have faced the so-called "PRESSURE", the burden in our shoulders as they say, for we are the Regional Science High School in the region, we have to be always on top. The expectations were so high on us.

My family, friends, and almost everyone I've known expected me to top the class. Not just in academics, but also in extra-curricular activities. I have been a constant honor student way back in grade school, and I maintained the rank 1 title until the third year in high school. So, it's just not surprising if everyone expects me to be the Class Valedictorian.

Valedictory Address

         To our School’s Division Superintendent, Dr. Allan G. Farnazo, our principal, Mrs. Norma P. Rendon, honored guests, friends and family, faculty and staff, fellow graduates, ladies and gentlemen, good morning.

             Today marks the most significant and memorable event which, we the graduates will never forget.           

        Graduation! Yes, the day of achievement and a crowning glory of four years of intellectual struggle and sacrifices. At last, we have reaped the fruits of our toil and diligence. However, the race isn’t done yet, it is not the end but only a beginning of a bigger task ahead of us. 

            For the past four years, no one in this graduating class could have predicted that the years would have come and gone so quickly. When we first came to this school, we were skeptical. All of us had been pulled out of our comfort zones and pushed into a completely new environment, with new rules, new teachers, and new peers. Some of us realized right away that things would be different and tried to adapt to these new surroundings, while others clung to their old values and stubbornly refused to let go. In time, groups arose like Bud Sis and Bro, ZHYLL, Yhotz, Tropang Uhong and many more. We progressed as individuals to form a unified community.

But let us take a moment to examine the graduating class. From the moment this class set foot in ALSCI, we have set the precedent for leadership within the school and community. With a record seventy-eight individuals achieving the distinction of honors, our class has continually surpassed all expectations. Who could forget winning the volleyball team in Intramurals? The leadership of our batch has led the team be declared champion.

KONY 2012 (A Reaction Paper)

Joseph Kony

Make Joseph Kony famous. That is the goal of a 30-minute video produced by the nonprofit organization Invisible Children. The video, released just two weeks ago, has already received more than 68 million views and counting between Vimeo and YouTube. The documentary follows filmmaker Jason Russell in his pursuit to end the conflict in Uganda by capturing Joseph Kony, the leader of the rebel group the Lord's Resistance Army, his personal army of kidnapped children.

The KONY 2012 documentary was created by Invisible Children and ”aims to make Joseph Kony famous, not to celebrate him, but to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice.”

Joseph Kony is a very evil man.  Kony is an Ugandan warlord who kidnaps children and uses them as child soldiers and sex slaves for his militia: the LRA.  A radically perverted and delusional terrorist, Kony has claimed to get orders and authority from divine powers.  Many of his followers and enemies believe he has been possessed by powerful spirits, which dictate orders through him. 

Instigating a cult in the form of an army of child soldiers, Joseph Kony is responsible for numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity.  He is among the International Criminal Court’s most wanted.

Show the World

Be patient, persevere and you will be rewarded.

This saying was proved to be true as a research team of four under Shiela P. Butil’s coaching was able to participate in an international contest just this February 2012.

Being invited and joining international scholarships and seminars are normal for Science high school students but the acceptance of said school to join an international contest is a turning point for the institution and the first in the history of its students. We can only imagine the flow of emotions from the involved starting from surprise, shock to happiness.

No time was wasted and preparations were made at breakneck speeds. Nobody bowed to the pressure of time management. Sacrifices were made and priorities are changed. Sleep was given small attention and luxury and pleasure lay downright forgotten for a moment. The spotlight and focus was unwavering solely on a research paper as students and teachers juggled time like pros. As the paper approaches its finish, other concerns began to surface. Time and funds became scarce and the stress and fatigue are catching the researchers. Still, tongues are persuasive and many people with big hearts and bigger bank accounts are more than eager to help.

Consults and tips were thrown back and forth and as students internalized each other’s parts. Help came from both expected and unexpected roots.

Breathes were held long when problems with the travel order came up but two day’s time is enough to remedy anything. The feeling of lightness came up as soon as the connecting flight to India came nearer.