To the FEU President, Dr. Michael M. Alba; our guest speaker, Dr. Francis C. Chua; our Senior Executive Director, Dr. Benson T. Tan; our college registrar, Dr. Remella A. Cabreros; our Senior Directors, Academic Directors, faculty members, staff, proud parents, and my fellow graduates.
A pleasant afternoon!
Speaking in front of you right now still sends chills to my bones. It’s unbelievable. Memories of good and not so good experiences when I first set foot on the grounds of FEU Tech are flashing back at this very moment. But allow me to pick just the right ones.
First of all, I just wanted to congratulate all of us. After years of hardship, seemingly unending examinations, proving yourself that you deserve that 1.0 grade or 4.0, chasing your professors during grade consultation or before the grade submission, looking for them all over the campus, sleepless nights, everyday cramming— to name a few. And here we are, wearing our black togas with different colors of orange, gold and silver hoods ready to sing our last hymn.
The honor of speaking in this podium is a dream come true for me, but the road to where I am now wasn’t easy. Even writing this speech wasn’t easy. I remember the first draft I submitted to Sir Rio, I started with Once upon a time then followed by how I got to this institute, the challenges I faced, the people I dealt with, people who broke my heart, people who doubted me, etcetera, etcetera. After coaching, Sir made me realize that just like the bumpy roads I encountered in my four years and one term at FEU Tech, I can pull this off too. Part of that realization is recognizing my Achilles heel in order to find my strength, become braver, and grow as an individual and just like the plants out there, we need rain and sunshine to grow.
They say Never forget who was there for you when no one else was.
So, allow me to express my gratitude to the people who are part of my strength and bravery.
Of course, above all is God for giving the perfect timing in everything. Second, to my Mama and Papa, thank you for supporting me in everything I do, for being my inspiration to study harder, to persevere, and to be more determined. I also thank Ate Deth, Ate Abby, Kuya Ace, Tita Myrna. Even Though they are not here, These guys are amazing. They helped me build my foundation, an opportunity that every child could wish for.
To FEU Tech and the scholarship grants, thank you for the generosity. To my CPE family, my professors, Sir Moi, Sir Onin, Ma’am Elie! Thank you for listening, guiding, inspiring, encouraging, and most importantly for being the second parents to me.
And of course, to my friends who are standing still, Justin, Pamilyang ItamAmbassadors , OJT friends, thesis mates especially to Robert, and my batch mates, you guys are the big part why I am standing here. I couldn’t have done it without you all. Thank you!
Lastly, let’s give ourselves a pat on our shoulder. We survived the challenging, bittersweet but wonderful years of our lives.
Aristotle once said and I quote, The law is reason, free from passion. It just means that you cannot allow personal feelings to interfere with your decision-making because the law, the rules are meant to be followed. If Aristotle met the people who made me braver, he would have revised his statement. Reason isn’t above passion. It is the love and empathy of the people around me which made me braver, more reasonable, and kinder.
Now as we move up to our next chapter of our lives, I want you, my fellow graduates, to remember that the world out there is much wider and bigger, we will experience a lot of NOS, you are not good enough, you are not what we are looking for. That’s perfectly fine. Keep moving, keep finding the fortune as Virgil said Audentis Fortuna Iuvat (Fortune always favors the brave). Maybe it is easier SAID than done. But I did it. We all did it. We just have to be BRAVER, be EXCELLENT, and be UPRIGHT!
THANK YOU AND CONGRATULATIONS TO US ALL!