Well, for some good reasons, I did not turn down an invitation to act as guest speaker in a grade school graduation. First, it was my alma mater in the barrio which is more than 4 kms. away from civilization. It is because we had to hike more than 4 kms. to reach the place. The road's condition was so bad that even single motorcycles find it hard to traverse this road.
The NIA has badly criss-crossed the old road (which was much better than what it is now) with its unfinished main canal. Ooww, reminds me again of that corrupt government agency. After it has forsaken the Malmar Irrigation project with unfinished civil works, unpaid right-of-way claims, some alleged double claims and payroll padding, etc.. it has only made the road condition worse. This was suppose to be part of NIA's obligation to improve the Batulawan-Gokotan provincial road because it is to be criss-crossed by the the main canal which was supposed to connect phase 1 of the project to phase 2 of the project in Pikit side.
Well, so much for my relentless ire with that corrupt goverment agency before it takes so much space of this blog page! (I mean NIA-Malmar, so I can't be accused of hasty generalization.. at least I have concrete proofs on how some of my relatives employed with NIA, or once connected to it, had conveniently but illegally enriched themselves out of the Malmar project funds.. in case someone is enticed to sue me for these statements!)
Second, my parents, brothers, sisters, relatives and friends had long wanted to see me after not having visited the place for almost 20 years!
Third, as the Teacher-in-Charge of the school puts it: "this is the only time that we have had a real good speaker, a Ph.D. at that!" (Well, that's his assumption since it was said before my speech).
Fourth, I had also longed to see the place, after almost 20 years leave of absence, to see for myself what happened to the face of the earth there. Sure enough, I would no longer recognize some of my favorite spots in the area after it was deface from the surface of the earth in the name of development. I would no longer recognize the many faces in the audience and some old folks would hug me but curse me afterwards for not having recognized them anymore. I'm sorry!
And fifth, I always imagine that teaching in the post graduate studies is much easier than teaching grade one in the barrio. In much the same way, communicating with a bunch of professionals in the graduate school is much easier than doing the same to a group of grade school pupils in terms of the sender-receiver communication relationship. And so, guesting as speaker in a grade school graduation is whole lotta challenging if not unthinkable for me.
My brother, the President of the Parents, Teachers and Community Association (PCTA), had called me up a day before and asked me to buy or donate some gold medals. He never told me that those gold medals were intended for his daughter (my niece) as she was the class valedictorian. Everything seems to have come to me as a pleasant surprise.
And now, the gist of my speech: I said a lot of things to impress upon the audience that the only Ph.D. todate from this barrio has surfaced to avenge a lot of things. Yahohoo.. here they are:
First, I told them how difficult it was for me to hike a distant of more or less 2 kms. every school days to finish my primary grades, and consider this, I was not of school age when I entered grade one because I couldn't reach my left ear with my right hand strethced across the topmost of my head. I had proven many years later that that technique of determining a child's schooling age was scientific after I tried the same technique, for curiousity's sake, to my children.
Second, I told them that, though my parents were not rich, they had the right attitude for me which was so important that time. Until early 1960s, there were still a lot of Muslim parents who are hesitant to send their children to school for fear of being Christianized. Most parents would rather have their children with them as helpers in the farm. Lucky me, my parents did not have all of those for me. They would rather see me get educated by all means. Thank you Lord, my parents attitude was more than enough for me to finish secondary education - and in a sectarian school.. Notre Dame of Pikit. I was never Christianized!
Third, I told them that poverty should not hinder anyone from pursuing higher education or going through the education ladder. And what else, my favorite example is always myself. This is not a case of self-centeredness but determination well exemplified.
Fourth, I told the grade school graduates to choose the right kind of group (or barkada) that they should belong to. In the face of all the temptations that surround us today in the modern world, the peer influence is very strong, next to, if not more than the parents' influence. This was after I realize the truth in the old adage: "Tell me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are!"
And fifth, I told them to be relentless in their faith and piety. It is only when you have strong faith in God and uncompromising piety that you are able to fight evil and choose right over wrong, good over bad, and success over failure. I BELIEVE that success and failure - nowadays.. have become a matter of choice!!
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