Another school year is about to start—another adventure is about to begin. It's been a couple of years and finally, senior high school na'ko. Nakakapanibago! New friends, new classmates, everything is just... New.
It´s a lovely day, a bright sunny morning. Right now, I’m here in my classroom and currently waiting for my professor to start his class.
"A blessed morning class," Professor Jay Ar said.
"Good morning Sir!" class replied.
"Since this is the first day of school, no more classes for today just introduce yourself instead," Professor Jay Ar explained.
Bigla akong nawala sa mood at lumipad ang isipan sa kawalan. After a few minutes, nagulat na lang ako 'nung may biglang tumawag sa name ko and I suddenly realized na si Sir 'yung tumatawag ng name ko.
"Miss.. are you still here?" Professor Jay Ar asked.
"Yes sir!" I replied.
"So start introducing" Professor Jay Ar.
"Okay sir, I'm Sorry" sagot ko habang unti-unting tumatayo at hinahanda ang sarili. "You don't know much about me. So, let me introduce myself first. My name is Jasper Jean Mariano but you can call me Jay-Jay. I'm from Holy Saints High School. Third daughter of Mrs. and Mr. Mariano,"
pakilala ko.
Natapos ang maghapon at salamat uwian na.
Mabilis na lumipas ang araw at gabi. Every second, every minute, every hour seems fleeting. During the first three weeks of school, everything is just fine not until class suspension happened.
"Anak, labas ka dito saglit" sabi ni Nanay habang abalang nanonood ng balita.
"Sige po Nay" maayos na sagot ko.
"May lumalaganap na sakit ngayon sa bansa natin" paliwanag ni Nanay
"Coronavirus Nay, nakakabahala na" tugon ko habang nakikinig sa balitang isinasaad ng broadcaster.
NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT
Napasailalim po sa Modified General Community Quarantine ang Metro Manila
"Mapapasailalim tayo sa MGCQ!" inis na sabi ko.
The Corona Virus Pandemic has change the world from face to face interaction to physical distancing, from fine dining to delivery, from being outside to being isolated and from 'Physical Education to Online Distance Education'. The rushed transition to online teaching after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has left big implication or change in people's living system. Right now I’m here in my room and currently preparing for my next online class.
"Kailan ba babalik sa dati?" malungkot kong sabi.
At exactly eight o'clock in the morning, Professor Jay-ar started his class virtually. Mga ilang minuto na ang lumipas na nakatulala lang ako sa kisame habang inaalala ang masasayang memories 'nung okay pa ang lahat. I miss my friends and having study groups with them. I miss all the tawanan, kalokohan, chikahan, at pati na rin ang kantahan tuwing walang klase ang next subject teacher namin. That feeling na pare-pareho kayo ng paraan ng pag-iisip 'yung tipong isang tingin mo pa lang gets na niya agad ang meaning no'n. Sabay-sabay kayong masayang magsasabi ng 'Walang Pasok' bukas at biglang liliwanag ang mukha then lalawak ang ngiti. In short I miss studying on campus.
"That's all for today's meeting. I hope you learned something. Thank you!" Professor Jay Ar said.
Nabigla ako dahil hindi ko namalayan na natapos ang first session namin nang wala akong naintindihan. Natapos ang maghapon and up until now wala pa rin ako sa sarili ko. Totoo naman kasi iba pa rin 'yung feeling kapag nasa sa loob ka ng classroom at campus. Iba pa rin 'yung mga makakasalubong mo sila sa corridor tapos lakas maka-barkada ng vibes. Iba pa rin 'yung amoy ng whiteboard marker, 'yung pagtungo nila kapag may nalalaman silang bago, 'yung unti-unting pagpasok nila ng classroom hanggang sa mapuno 'yung kwarto. I overthink too much dahilan para atakihin ako ng anxiety ko. Ayokong mapag-isa, nilalamon ako ng sarili kong pagiisip. I hate this feeling, ayokong nakakaramdam ako ng ganito. Sumasagi sa isip ko 'yung last day na nasa campus kami. Sobrang saya 'nung may announcement na suspension ng klase pero hindi ko naman inaasahan na magtutuloy-tuloy 'yon. Bumuo pa kami no'n ng tagline 'hashtag walang pasok'
Dumating sa point na komplikado na ang sitwasyon. I've faced issues during lessons on video conferencing platforms such as failing to screen-share or audio problems where I can't hear what the lecturer is saying. Nagkasabay-sabay ang lahat, ilang araw din akong sinumpong ng anxiety ko kaya nawalan ako ng focus sa mahahalagang bagay na dapat pinagtutuunan ko ng pansin.
Until one day, siguro I just woke up on the right side of the bed. I realized that there is always something to be thankful for. It’s easy to complain about how chaotic the world is, but complaining without action just doesn’t change anything. I just realize that even the struggles, the emptiness, the failures, and the pain that we’re going through can be a blessing in disguise too! These difficulties will teach us what really matters most in life and encourages us to be the best version of ourselves. Ang dami kong naging realizations from the moment I woke up. Lahat ng memories na dala-dala ko ay gagawin kong motivation na balang araw mangyayari ulit ito pero mas masaya na. I keep in mind that whatever happens in your life always put God at the center of your heart. Simula noon and up until now unti-unti na akong nag move forward.
Personally, this made me unmotivated, but I'm trying to stay optimistic. Kamusta nga ba ako sa panahon ng pandemya? Heto ako ngayon, patuloy na lumalaban sa anumang dagok ng kapalaran. Inaalala ang masasayang memories nang may ngiti sa mga labi. Ang mga katagang 'hashtag walang pasok' na nagiging dahilan kung bakit ako masaya noon ay isa na lang mumunting alaala ngayon na hindi ko alam kung kailan muling mangyayari. If only I could travel back in time pero imposible. Right at this time, I always keep in mind that God has a bigger plan for me than I have for myself. God got me here for something. I believe God put me in this road for a purpose. I know that He would never put me in this position, if it wasn't for a good reason. Trust him!
***
𝓑𝓫. 𝓡𝓪𝓲
