After more then three years of not seeing me, some of my high school friends were expectedly surprised with the sort of things I got myself into within that span of time, and the things that seem to have ‘changed’ since high school.

Back in high school, see, being the youngest in class, I’ve always kept that sort of bunso role (and image) among all us boys in class. I find it funny myself. Their first surprise was when I told them I was part of a fraternity. Oh my god, Victor is a fratman? I didn’t expect it myself, believe me. I was never the fratman material, back in high school, and up until now. That is if you follow the traditional stereotypes. The part of me being an activist and a student council member didn’t come off to them as much of a surprise. I was class vice-president for half our stay in high school, after all, and often ranted about our seeming apathy and indifference with what’s happening around us.

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Tags: high school friends

I haven’t had much time to blog lately. I’m often too tired to spend too much time online, so all I get to do is a little surfing and bloghopping. I’m posting this for the sake of updating! Hehe.

Surfing around Multiply, I came across Raf Dionisio’s page, a classmate from high school, who recently posted some pictures of our 2002 2003 class field trip in Enchanted Kingdom. I know, it probably just works for people who were involved but it really does give me a feeling of nostalgia… (Though, it’s not as if it was that long ago).

I actually blogged about it here and here. Gee, I just realized how amusing and convenient it is for me to look back. I have been blogging since first year high school!

I spent my high school years in Ateneo. Every time someone would ask me why I didn’t pursue my college education in Ateneo, I always say that I don’t feel like I belong to Ateneo or with “Ateneans”, for lack of a better answer.

In Ateneo, we were formed to be future leaders who will serve the Filipino community or to be men for others. We were instilled with the value of compassion for the underprivileged, the poor and the disadvantaged, with a conscience to defend what is right. There is nothing inherently wrong with those. But now that I come to think of it, it all seemed elitist and messianic. Even the school’s geography complements this dynamics of social space. “We stand on a hill between the earth and sky” cries our alma mater song. Indeed Ateneo sits on a hill (a ridge, actually, Loyola Heights) looking down on Marikina Valley, where we actually often go for our exposure trips and Tulong Dunong tutoring sessions.

I don’t pretend to be proletariat. Ateneo, apparent in its mission vision for its students, recognizes the fact that much of its student population comes from the privileged few of this country. Whether you like it or not, Ateneans do become the leaders in business and politics in this country. [It is interesting to note that all of the Arroyos are Ateneans]. And that is why Ateneo apparently tries to mold us future leaders into socially responsible ones while in its ‘care’. [Let's try not to think how many Ateneans failed to live up to their alma mater's aspirations for them to be the leaders it aspired for them to be].

Ateneo High School has a lot of social service programs for its students, geared to make them more ‘aware’ of the society they live in and to make them realize of their status and social responsibility as ‘future leaders’. I volunteered for the week-long exposure trip to Zambales, diligently fulfilled tutoring and community service duties, but in the end I don’t think afternoon exposure trips and weekend immersion programs or weekly community service sessions are enough. They are but temporary “field trips” Ateneans could conveniently take when they need to or when they feel like it. I guess I wanted to take it to another level. It was time for me to become a man WITH others. As part of this society I wish to serve, it was imperative for me to be with the people, to be with the bayan I am part of. Some Ateneans might find this terribly offensive, but chances are slim of fulfilling that desire while I remained in this exclusive gated and guarded university we call Ateneo. [Okay fine, it's my bias].

In UP, I found myself within an atmosphere more conducive for the fulfillment of my personal and social convictions, which Ateneo played a big part in forming. This is not to romanticize the university but it is truly in UP where I feel like I can do more. The experience of being with others is more genuine. You are part of and much committed to the bayan you used to observe from the comforts of Loyola Heights. You are more committed to the bayan who toils to pay for much of your education. You get to have the chance to understand better their struggles and aspirations and join them in their call for reform and changes. It comes to a point when you reazlie that you shouldn’t even make the distinction between a me and a them. It become a collective struggle. It is our struggle as a people.

In its website, the Ateneo High School claims that it is a college preparatory school, and as such it prepares the student for the university. With that, I might as well say that Ateneo High prepared me well indeed to become a student of the University of the Philippines . If anyone would ask me why I left Ateneo, I’d now say it’s because I find fulfillment in my being a man for others by being an iskolar ng bayan.

Driving lessons last Saturday were okay. But I am dissatisfied with my instructor. He answers my urgent questions on the road with more questions thereby confusing me all the more, and then he scolds me when I get confused while I’m driving. Well, if he didn’t speak as if he was drunk, or if he would have answered my questions directly, then the test drive would have been smoother than how it actually went. But because he was confusing me a lot, I just had to stall in the middle of the country’s widest avenue. Hmph. One time he scolded me for using my diskarte. ‘Wag ko raw munang pairalin diskarte ko. Minutes later I stalled, because I cautioned myself and not used my knee-jerk diskarte. So he scolded me again. Pairalin ko naman ang diskarte ko! Buwisit!

Okay, last Sunday, I visited the wake of my high school classmate’s dad. It was a pleasure to see him again, a couple of months after graduation. We caught up on each other for a while, and then talked about his dad. It’s so sad and infuriating, really. It was such an unnecessary casualty.

It’s so tragic and morbid. My high school classmate’s dad, who works at the port of Manila, drowned to his death during the recent typhoon Igme.

Capt. Luis Nuñez bloated remains were plucked from sea at 6 a.m. Friday, PCG [Philippine Coast Guard] spokesman Lt. Armand Balilo said.

Nuñez has been missing since Wednesday afternoon after falling off a ladder while trying to board the SuperFerry 19 at the Manila South Harbor, Balilo said.

[from ABS-CBNnews.com, July 2, 2004]

It makes me angry. What an unecessary casualty. How can you just give up on someone who’s drowning to his death. So they did try to save him, but he fell off a second time. So what! Then try to save him again! He’s still alive, how can you surrender somebody else’s life to death?! Ugh!! This happened on a Wednesday. The man’s bloated up body was only recovered this morning.

I spent yesterday afternoon at Megamall and last night at Pobbe’s party.

Oh, by the way, I rode the public bus yesterday for the first time! Yes, I’m sheltered like that. At first I had no idea what to do. Do I pay immediately upon jumping in or do I pay when I get down? Anyway, I just took a seat and observed how other people paid and went down. The public bus system leaves so much to be desired. Like for example, there doesn’t seem to be any consistent bus stop system. Buses stop everywhere to pick passengers up. And, bus drivers cut through queues and keep swerving and switching lanes. And most buses I see are major air polluters. There are far too many of these ill-trained driver-driven and air-pollutant buses in Manila already, I rarely see any of them filled up. Anyway, so it took fourteen pesos and thirty minutes for the bus to get from Commonwealth to Megamall. So, the bus stopped everywhere and yet it didn’t stop at Megamall. Bwisit talaga! (Do you even say ‘para’ in a bus?). I had to take the MRT back to Ortigas.

Roamed around Megamall first (finally got to use my credit card, hands-on), before meeting up with Rene, Jake and Erik. I invited them to watch The Uninvited (4 Inyong Shiktak) (aahahaha!). It’s supposed to be a Korean horror movie, but it doesn’t feel really like a horror movie at all (its flash web site is even scarier!!). It didn’t deserve any screams or shrieks. It was more of a dramatic, dragging psychological mystery movie, that you could barely understand. Clues are littered everywhere, but nothing binds them strongly together. Some of them even appeared like they were nuisances to the plot. But I’m giving it the benefit of the doubt. Maybe there were some cultural references from Korea that we didn’t understand. Or maybe I just dislike horror suspense movies that are based on psychological problems and illusions that are limited to some of the characters. It’s a good thing watching movies at Megamall is fairly cheap. Bikoy’s rating: 6/10

We arrived at Pobbe’s part at half-past seven in the evening. I’ll write about that in this protected entry.

Anyway, in the taxi on the way home, I was talking to the driver about… what else, politics. Hah, it pays if you familiarize yourselves with other local officials from some provinces. I’m weird like that. It just so happens that he’s from Antipolo and I am familiar with their congressman (I was researching for my article on politicans who come from the Ateneo high school), with their governor, etc. I don’t need to tell you who the driver and his colleagues are voting for president this May.

Well, I didn’t cry a while ago. Thankfully. It was a little difficult to overcome the feeling of immense happiness that high school is over (in a good sense). Parang ngayon lang, habang nagtatype ako ng entry ko ngayong gabi ko nararamdaman ‘yung lungkot na magkakahiwalay-hiwalay na kami.

Anyway, before this gets out of hand…

Graduation Ceremonies

This time, ‘di na ‘ko late for the processional. The great fulfillment of wearing a graduation toga while marching with your classmates among tens of flashing lights per second along the path was fantastic. I felt so proud of myself and of my fellow classmates and batchmates. That was it, we were graduating from high school, finally.

So the graduation ceremonies commenced, and all the formalities were executed. I got my second honors medal, I got my diploma. Then we all sang the school hymn at the end. I’ve never sang the song with as much passion as I had tonight. The batch was singing the song in great chorus. Muntik na ‘ko maiyak kasi ‘yung tunog ng marching band nagpapaalala sa ‘kin sa prusisyon ng patay. I can’t really describe the feeling well. I felt really happy that high school is over, and yet really sad that I’m straying away from the path most of my classmates for four years are going to take in Ateneo college. Oh well.

I’ll miss 4-O!! Walang kalimutan ‘to ah! (Mag-reunion na tayo next month, haha).

Every time we get together for a group picture, we’d always have to stay put with our smiles for more than a minute of continuous flashes of camera lights. Haha, feeling namin talaga para kaming mga celebrities!

Oh, also, we are all praying for a successful outcome of one of our classmates’ mom’s dangerous (even fatal) head surgery tomorrow. PLEASE pray for her too. Our classmate had to miss our graduation ceremonies tonight. God bless their family in the coming days, whatever the outcome may be. CINCO! The trauma must be horrible right now *hug*.

Post-Graduation Dinner

After the graduation ceremonies, we went off to Wan Chai Tea House along Congressional Ave. in Quezon City.

OKAY. I did admit I said that I love Chinese food. But gee, we don’t have to overdo it!! I’m starting to get sick of Chinese food. Whenever we eat with relatives these past few months, we’ve always been going to Chinese restaurants. I’m turning Chinese already! STOP!

Anyway, so my godparents were there. And some of our relatives from Bulacan and Cavite were there too. Nothing much. I just continued bloating myself up.

EDIT (March 30, 2004, 17:20): Full-size pictures can be viewed in one of my zorpia albums

I’m kind of bloated. There has been eating gatherings all graduation day. There was a class post-baccalaureate mass breakfast at school in the morning, then we ate with my relatives from Cavite for lunch, then we had dinner with my parents’ other friends and our relatives from Bulacan.

Baccalaureate Mass & Breakfast

I got scolded by one of the assistant principals because I was late for the processional, and I unintentionally disrupted the other classes’ lines. Oh well. Naflatan kasi kami eh. (Si Mama, na-flat ‘yung gulong ng wheelchair n’ya).

The mass was the usual school mass. But strangely, it didn’t feel as long and drudging as it actually was.

After the mass was the breakfast with the class. I’m always uneasy when my parents are present in class ocassions. I always tend to behave and not act like myself for some reason.

Pre-Graduation Lunch

We had lunch with our relatives from Amadeo at Shangri-La along Times St. in Quezon City. Okay… Chinese food again. My aunts and uncle were there. Lolo and her sisters were there too. As usual, he kept crying. He’s funny.

(Parehas kami ng suot ng mga waiters…)