Honor and Excellence

Inspiring. Even if I haven't been lucky enough to have her as my professor in college, I feel like she threw that threat to me as well. She reminds me so much of the many other UPD professors who taught me more than just lessons from textbooks.

Education beyond the four walls of the classroom. That's always been the UPD way.

Hats Off

I feel kind of sad that I didn't watch the Eraserheads' concert yesterday. Mine's probably the lamest excuse ever to pass up on that one especially since I was guaranteed good vantage point and seat from the VIP area courtesy of a sis who was there in behalf of one of the many sponsors of that event.

Unfortunately, just thinking about the crowd that was expected to turn out - for a lot of kick-ass reasons - already drained me of energy. It's probably one of those preternatural glitches in my genetic make-up or I may just be getting old but crowds, especially huge crowds, always leave me feeling weak.

I would have wanted to watch the group perform. To be honest, I can't even claim to be one of their most loyal fans as I don't know a lot of what transpired to them since they've gone mainstream. But I have huge admiration for them, especially for the individuals who I remember quite fondly and with huge respect.

My first memories of them were during those annual Para Sa 'Yo Bagong Isko free concerts that our sorority organized. Eraserheads performed in those concerts at least thrice and I remember one of those performances were during that time when they were already beginning to make waves in the Philippine music industry. I thought then that they wouldn't agree to perform for us because we didn't have the budget for talent fees of famous bands but that didn't stop them from making their fans, especially the freshmen, happy.

The band had such a huge following in campus at that time that I could still remember students risking missing dorm curfews just to watch them perform in various gigs at school. And when they went mainstream, I remember that some of their fans were dismayed for reasons I couldn't quite understand. Unlike most people, I'm not that good in navigating the intricate roads of music. I admire music like one who admires genius or any exquisite work of art. I may not be able to completely figure it out, but I'm touched by whatever raw power and talent that created it.

It's now almost two decades since I first saw them, easily a long time to forget. But if nothing else, I can still vividly remember those occasions and still feel my heart constrict with pride and admiration for a group that has managed to create their unique brand of music and touch people's lives with it.

I don't know enough of what they did after those early days. But I know this - they will always have that special place in the hearts of the people who have, at some point in their lives, listened to their music and were moved by it.

Where the cradle rocks

Parati naman akong nagkakaroon ng pagkakataong pumunta ng campus. Hindi naman maiiwasan dahil nariyan ang mga samut-saring dahilan para bumisita. It could be just to meet with old friends, pahirapan ang sarili sa capoeira training, sumali sa mga fun runs, bumisita sa mga sisses, mag-lunch sa Beach House, tumambay at kumain ng sandamakmak na cake sa Chocolate Kiss, lumamon ng isaw sa may Kalayaan at napakarami pang maisipang dahilan just to hang-out in U.P.

Mahirap naman kasing alisin talaga sa sistema ang U.P. Sa malawak na campus, sa loob at labas ng apat na sulok ng classroom - doon hinubog ang payak na kaisipan at puso ko to be who I am now. Doon ako natutong lumangoy sa kumunoy.

I stepped out from U.P. but I never really left it. I sometimes think that my blood turned maroon from that moment I unpacked my bags in my room in Kalayaan.

Naisip ko lang, schools are like labels. The best and worst of us wear them like a badge. I wear my badge not because I believe that it represents the one true source of that breed of intelligent and gifted individuals. Other schools are equally equipped to produce such great minds.

Basta for me, my badge is a reminder to myself of how I learned to view the life I had in that cradle that nurtured my young mind. It was there that I began to believe that beyond intellect, beyond logic, beyond the values we give to superficial things - there are other important things that are waiting for discernment. Sometimes, it just takes an open mind to find an easier path to learning. It would be good to remind myself time and again...walang pakialamanan ng trip helps.

(Photo from here.)