by Marvin Diegor (Student Contributor)
It was another perfect morning. The sun was up and it was the 6th of May. Ah. What a beautiful way to welcome the day, if not for the annoying little alarm that kept on ringing since 9:00 AM! Argh! What in the world could an alarm be doing beside my bed, at an early time, at a summer morning, at the last month of my vacation, with the words: “Time for school!”?
And it all came down crashing in my aching head. It is my first day of studying what teachers took 4 years to teach me… in 19 days: High School.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
***
THAT, up there, was my initial reaction to my summer class in Ahead. Now, a week later, I completely have no regrets whatsoever in waking up that day and taking the effort to take myself to what maybe my only hope to achieving the key to my future (nosebleed cue, right here).
Nope, I wasn’t taking summer class because I failed a few subjects. I’m taking them because I want to improve my grades, and most importantly, make sure that I can pass the college entrance tests which will be my turning point in life. Ultimate nerd? Yeah, I know. Well, we’ll just see about that 5 years from now, after graduation.
You see, I had realized that even if you are the son of the richest man or the daughter of the CEO of a leading company, you are not excused, in any way possible (and impossible), from failing in life because somehow you thought that education is not an important part of your existence that you actually planned to “skip it.” No, keine, iiya, nyet, ninguna, HINDI.
That, I realized quite some time ago, but I only saw it in action just a few days ago, in the 5th day of my class.
I hope you’re not yet bored because I still plan on telling you this story:
It was my language proficiency class. We were just about to start the discussion when our lecturer wrote something on the board: “Obama – Language.” And then, he asked us why US President Barrack Obama is crucial to our discussion. He asked everyone, but once you answer, you can’t answer anymore (his policy of giving everyone a fair chance). Anyways, I actually answered an earlier question so I can’t answer that one. I was irritated for that.
What disappoints me more is that no one was standing up to the challenge of answering it. It was a fairly easy question for anyone who has been watching the news. Finally, this girl stood up and said, “It’s because of his speeches.” And that’s how our lecturer started to tell how an African man became a master of the English language.
Well, what can we say about that? I know the news is one of the last things a teenager would watch. I’d be in another world if a kid would line up CNN with MTV and HBO. But just simply knowing what’s happening around you is a completely different thing. Knowing is not being “out” (or being baduy for most Pinoy kids). In fact, it puts you in the league of the “in.”
Knowing is learning. Learning is education. Education is crucial. And, as any other crucial thing, it’s hard to do. But it pays off in different ways; one of them would be an easy time to find jobs after graduation. A high salary might sound good too.
A few may know that some companies don’t accept graduates who didn’t come from the Top 3 universities of the country, namely the University of the Philippines, the Ateneo de Manila University and the De La Salle University (trivia: they’re also among the Top 500 universities in the world). Call it elitism, call it underestimation, and call it inequality or any other term that means “unfair,” but quality service starts with quality people who came from quality institutions.
And now, I sit in a classroom in the leading review center there is in the country, studying what the difference is between “its” and “it’s.” It might be a long way from mastering the language, but it’s a pair of words that will do as any in beginning the road to success. Going back to the basics is the simplest way to get ready for what’s ahead: the rest of your life.
It is 6:33 PM. Another one of my class has ended. It’s tiring, I freeze in the aircon’s wrath (it’s right in front of me. *wink*), and it gives me pimples. But at the end of the day, I know it’s worth it, and as the sun sets down, I know this would be a summer spent well.
