12.20.2008

Oh, hullo. :)

It's officially, the start of our Christams break! Actually, it has been official since 7am of yesterday (December 19).

18th's morning was spent for a Youth Gathering activity. It was the school's first ever and it was beyond. Hahaha! There were in-house bands from the different high school year levels -two from our batch- and they played worship songs. Go Grounded and Damsels Saves The Hero! You guys were great! Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna in the highest! The Youth Gathering was interactive. We played games and did dances which we practiced beforehand. The games were fun! I learned 2 songs that day:

This is the story of my pony,

The story of my big fat pony.

This is the story of my pony,

this is what they told me:

(this part comes with a dance)

Front, front, front, my baby

Side, side, side, my baby

Back, back, back, my baby

This is what they told me.

I forgot the other song.. : And I consider it as one of my 'self-titled' songs next to Creep by Radiohead and Unwell by Matchbox 20. :(

All I remember is that it's about an acorn nut and in the latter part of the song it says:

"I'm a nut, I'm a nut, I'm a nut and I am crazy."

Lol.

Anyway, after the Youth Gathering, was rest time! We just had to have that for later that day we'll be having our vigil and that means no sleeping. Haha. So some slept, some did not. I belong to the latter group. :p I did our Chemistry take-home quiz (again) which I finished earlier that week but unfortunately forgot to bring on the day of its submisson. After rest period, we (the high school body and the teachers and staff) went down to the cafeteria are to assemble. -Then the procession began. :p We had 7 stations to visit first before we proceeded to the Multi-Purpose Building for the actual vigil. The vigil was mostly about singing songs and all and it was a spiritual experience, of course. There was a time when we can also prostrate? -if that's what it's called- and it was nice. It felt like you could talk to God for hours. It was very peaceful. The night sky and the cold wind helped too. There was an alotted time for confession, adoration, rosary and faith sharing too. But I just pretty much walked around with a person or two and let the solemn, serene atmosphere of the night sink in.

Lights out was at around 12am? Not quite sure. I slept a little past that though for I didn't feel sleepy yet. We were woken up at around 5? I wasn't able to check the time. Dawn mass was on by then. My head wasn't very 'clear' at that time due to lack of sleep I believe.

Home was our next stop.

I arrived around 8am maybe and then slept for a few minutes before I got all set for Big Group's outing! Yay! My barkada and I decided to go to EK (Enchanted Kingdom) to celebrate the birthdays of 2 of our friends. We It was fun -it was their treat. :p Overall awesome experience.

We arrived at the venue at around 1pm and went home at 9 after hours of road trip, eating, rides and tons of fun! I don't want to explain in detail each activity we did -that would take forever and I know I still won't be able to make you feel the experience so I'd just provide you with pictures. ;)

My essay for Ateneo's AJSS.

I am a million things. Put together, I am one being. I consist of varying personalities, talents and skills, which burst forth whenever the moment allows it. I am who I am. I am unlike anyone else. You can judge me by the way I look, the way I move, by the way I speak; but I believe that no one knows who I am better than myself. I am a million things put together to make one being.

I am a lot of things and to enumerate them all would take more than 3 paragraphs long of an essay. To tell you how I see myself would take more than 24 hours of explanation, 26 letters and n phrases –it would take my whole existence for how I see myself is a continuous cycle –never ending.

It’s been 16 years since I’ve set foot on earth and with each transitional stage I’ve entered and come out of, I saw myself in a different light but what matters is the present, the concept I have of myself as of this moment, when I see my reflection not just in our bedroom mirror but also in the mirror I have hung in the depths of my mind.

I am a pencil guided by a hand –God’s hand.

I am my own witness to how greatly God has influenced my life: in the way I speak, in the way I act, in the way I live. It is through my faith in Him that I am able to move forward. In very rare occasions would you find me not praying before or after I study nor in other occasions. From the day’s start, to the day’s end, I live for Him. He is the first person I think of, and the last. If I would visit myself in the past, I’d be witnessing a different situation –I would still be praying and the like but my intentions are only for myself, for my greater glory, for my benefit. It is different now. I strive not only for myself, but also for others, especially God. He is truly the beginning and end of all things.

I am a mood ring who can tell how others feel –only I empathize.

What I am most proud of is not my talent, not my intelligence; rather, it is my ability to empathize. It is important for me to feel how others feel, to feel for others. It is through this action that I am able to be of comfort to others, that I am able to reach out to them. To be one with them in what they are feeling or experiencing is rewarding enough for an empathetic person like me. My one goal in life, past academic achievements and well-roundedness, is to cause a good change in a person’s life. When all worldly aspirations have been attained what else do we yearn for? –A deeper sense of purpose in life.

I believe that no matter how much worldly success I achieve in living for myself, nothing compares to the triumph you conquer when you live for others.

I am a blue among a sea of reds – I stand out.

I believe that I have found myself. Teenagers are often associated with identity crisis and it would be a lie if I said I haven’t gone through the same thing. I remember giving in to peer pressure, allowing myself to be mute and not speak up and riding the wave that everyone’s coasting in –but they are all things of the past now which seldom visit the present. I have learned to be myself, to stand up for what I believe in, to not conform. I have found my voice, a voice that’s louder than any other voice I had in the past. I am able to handle criticism and praise well and I use them to hone my character in a more positive way. I know my potentials and I try to reach past them. I am determined, motivated and good-natured. I am good in balancing the matters I am involved in and the different roles I play whether it be as a daughter, as a friend or as a student.

I am a lot of things and to enumerate them all would take more than 3 paragraphs long of an essay. To tell you how I see myself would take more than 24 hours of explanation, 26 letters and n phrases –it would take my whole existence for how I see myself is a continuous cycle –never ending.