AS WE CELEBRATE THE 55TH ANNIVERSARY OF OUR QUIRINO HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION, LET US FIRST SHOUT: THANK YOU LORD! BUHAY PA TAYO, MASAYA, NAGKAKAISA SA PAG CELEBRATE NG HINDI MAKALIMUTANG YUGTO NG ATING BUHAY!
QUIRINO HIGH SCHOOL. OUR SCHOOL BUILDING. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU. LOOKING AT THE PICTURE IS SO HEAR TUGGING. AND EVERY NOW AND THEN I IMAGINE I AM BACK THERE. I IMAGINE GOING TO THE LOBBY, THE HALLWAY AT THE GROUND FLOOR WHERE WE HAD OUR FIRST YEAR AND SECOND YEAR CLASSES. THEN UP THE STAIRWAY, WHERE WE SPENT OUR JUNIOR AND SENIOR YEARS. AND IT WAS CLEAR IN THE MY MIND. ANO BA YAN. SIGN OF OLD AGE?
WHY IS HIGH SCHOOL SO MEMORABLE?
I ONCE READ IN AN INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE: “FOR BETTER OR WORSE, WE NEVER FORGET HIGH SCHOOL.” THE ROMANTIC CRUSHES, MANY UNREQUITED, THE WONDERFUL AND SOMETIMES EMBARRASSING MOMENTS, ADOLESCENCE, PUBERTY, SEXUAL AWAKENING, PARENTAL AND TEACHER PRESSURE, SONGS, TRIUMPHS AND FRUSTRATIONS, HOPES, FEARS AND ANXIETIES ABOUT THE FUTURE AND MANY MORE UNFORGETTABLE MOMENTS. UNIVERSAL PALA ANG HIGH SCHOOL MEMORIES, HINDI LANG TAYO.
I HAD LONG WONDERED WHY HIGH SCHOOL MEMORIES ARE SO EMBEDDED AND UNFORGETTABLE. THEN I LEARNED WHAT PSYCHOLOGISTS CALL THE “REMINISCENCE BUMP” WHICH IS THE TENDENCY FOR OLDER ADULTS TO HAVE INCREASED RECOLLECTION FOR EVENTS THAT OCCURRED DURING THEIR ADOLESCENCE AND EARLY ADULTHOOD. NOW WE KNOW WHY THE TUG OF HIGH SCHOOL IS SO STRONG, SO IRRESISTIBLE. FEELING GOOD ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL IS JUST BEING HUMAN.
WE'VE HAD A LONG JOURNEY, WE HAVE RECEIVED SO MANY BLESSINGS ALONG THE WAY. THE BLESSINGS OF FAMILY, LOVE, UNDYING FRIENDSHIPS, WISDOM AND MANY MORE TO BE THANKFUL FOR.
I WOULD LIKE TO THINK THAT WE ALL HAD OUR UPS AND DOWNS ALONG THE WAY FROM 1962 TO TODAY. WE FOUGHT MANY BATTLES TO BE HERE TONIGHT.
IN MY CASE, I REMEMBER MY EARLY DAYS IN U.P. SHOCKING TO SAY THE LEAST. RELATING WITH THOSE WHO CAME FROM EXCLUSIVE SCHOOLS, WHOSE ENGLISH SPEAKING ABILITY DWARFED US WHO CAME FROM PUBLIC SCHOOLS. AT TIMES, I DID NOT EVEN WHAT TO RECITE CONSCIOUS OF THE MORE SOPHISTICATED ACCENTS OF THOSE FROM ATENEO, LA SALLE, ASSUMPTION, ST. SCHO. THEN BEING BEATEN UP AS A PLEBE WHEN I WENT TO PMA. TOUGH TO BE TALLER THAN MOST IN PMA. THEN AMERICA. ANNAPOLIS. MATHEMATICS. PHYSICS, ENGINEERING. BOXING. NAVY, ENDLESS PATROLS, EVEN DURING STORMY SEAS. SPRATLYS. STANDOFF AGAINST IN THE HIGH SEAS ANOTHER, BETTER EQUIPPED NAVY. POST OFFICE. CORPORATE WORLD. POLITICS. CABINET. YES, THE UPS AND DOWNS OF LIFE.
YOU KNOW ONE LESSON THAT I FOUND VERY USEFUL WAS AN ENCOUNTER WITH OUR PRINCIPAL, MRS. MONICACIA DE LA CRUZ, GOD BLESS HER SOUL. WE ALL REMEMBER MRS. DE LA CRUZ. IF YOU DON’T, BAKA ANO NA YAN… AL.. AL… ANO NAG YON? NAKALIMUTAN KO HA HA.
BACK TO MRS. DE LA CRUZ. ONE DAY, I TRIED TO PLAY A PRACTICAL JOKE ON HER. I GOT A PIECE OF DRY ICE, WRAPPED IT IN A SMALL PIECE OF PAPER TO LOOK LIKE A CIGARETTE. I WAS STANDING NEAR THE RESIDENCE OF CONRAD WITHIN SEEING DISTANCE FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE. THEN I SAW HERE THERE STANDING NEAR THE FLAGPOLE. I STARTED BLOWING THAT ROLLED PAPER WITH THE DRY ICE INSIDE AND OUT CAME FOG, LIKE CIGARETTE SMOKE. I KEPT ON PUFFING TRYING TO ATTRACT THE PRINCIPAL’S ATTENTION. THE SHE NOTICED AND HOLLERED MY NAME. GOLEZ!!!
AND I RAN TO HER. YOU ARE SMOKING!!! MAM, NO MAM, THIS IS NOT CIGARETTE. THIS IS DRY ICE. LOOK O. AND I THOUGHT I GOT ONE OVER HER. BUT SHE SAID; AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED, YOU ARE SMOKING!!!
AND YOU KNOW, SHE WAS RIGHT. AS FAR AS THE PUBLIC THERE WAS CONCERNED, A QUIRINO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT WAS SMOKING AND MADE THE SCHOOL LOOK BAD.
LESSON LEARNED: IN LIFE, YOU CANNOT JUST BE GOOD. YOU MUST ALSO LOOK GOOD. APPEARANCE MATTERS. LESSON LEARNED THAT HAS HELPED ME A LOT IN PMA, ANNAPOLIS. GOVERNMENT. POLITICS.
WE HAVE CHANGED A LOT IN MANY WAYS, BUT IN MANY WAYS WE HAVE ALSO REMAINED UNCHANGED. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE THAT HIGH SCHOOL TEENER INSIDE US, IN SPITE OF ALL THE LIFE EXPERIENCES, BLISSFUL AND NOT SO BLISSFUL, WE HAVE GONE THROUGH. THAT TEENER COMES OUT WHENEVER WE GET TOGETHER AND ENGAGE IN ENDLESS BANTER AND AFFECTION.
MERON TAYO CLASSMATE NA AKALA KO TOMBOY. SUMASALI SA BASEBALL. THEN WHEN I SAW HER AGAIN AFTER TWENTY YEARS OR SO, WOW! WHAT TRANSFORMATION.
MERON DIN IS DYAN. HALOS HINDI MO MALAPITAN. TISAY. MUKHANG ISNABERA. I CANNOT EVEN RECALL EVER TALKING TO HER DURING MY 4YEARS THERE. TAKOT MARAMI SA KANYA BECAUSE OF HER BIG BROTHER.
BUT WHEN I SAW HER AGAIN AFTER ALMOST 50 YEARS, BANG IBA NA! SUPER FRIENDLY AND SO OUTGOING.
THERE ARE SO MANY LIKE THEM. BUT THE TWO ARE AMONG THE BEST EXAMPLES OF TRANFORMATIPN.
THEY HAVE CHANGED IN MANY WAYS, YET THEY HAVE REMAINED UNCHANGED IN MANY WAYS. THEY REMAIN LOYAL, PROUD QUIRINIANS THROUGH AND THROUGH.
NOW, WE GATHER LIKE BROTHERS AND SISTERS. WE HAVE BECOME CLOSER. WE IN THE PHILIPPINES GET TOGETHER MORE OFTEN, LIKE ALMOST EVERY MONTH NOW, TO ENJOY SHARING STORIES OF MOMENTS LONG GONE, MANY OF WHICH HAVE BEEN RETOLD MANY TIMES BUT WE DON’T MIND LISTENING TO THEM AGAIN AND AGAIN, AS THOUGH RETELLING THEM WOULD BRING US BACK TO OUR HIGH SCHOOL DAYS.
IN OUR 50TH ANNIVERSARY REUNION, WE SANG THE LINES OF “THOSE WERE THE DAYS.”
I WOULD LIKE TO END BY REPEATING THESE LINES THAT I FEEL ARE BECOMING MORE MEANINGFUL WITH EACH PASSING YEAR.
OH MY FRIEND WE'RE OLDER BUT NO WISER
FOR IN OUR HEARTS THE DREAMS ARE STILL THE SAME
THOSE WERE THE DAYS MY FRIEND
WE THOUGHT THEY'D NEVER END
WE'D SING AND DANCE FOREVER AND A DAY
WE'D LIVE THE LIFE WE CHOOSE
WE'D FIGHT AND NEVER LOSE
FOR WE WERE YOUNG AND SURE TO HAVE OUR WAY.
LA LA LA LA...
THOSE WERE THE DAYS, OH YES THOSE WERE THE DAYS.’
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