Memoirs of My Youth

Anyway, here’s my list which I’ve divided into three categories: Sports, Music & Dance.

Sports

Badminton
1997-1998, Psychology Society, St. Paul QC, Silver
2003, East West Bank, Bronze

Volleyball
2001, East West Bank, Gold
2003, East West Bank

Cheerdancing
1991-1992, La Consolacion College Caloocan
1993-1994, La Consolacion College Caloocan
1995-1996, Psychology Society, St. Paul College QC
1997-1998, Psychology Society, St. Paul College QC

What I Remember:
Gruelling hours of practice, camaraderie with fellow athletes, injuries, late hours spent in school, my parents waiting at the parking lot, expenses!—gastos para sa uniform, sapatos, socks, bola, raketa, and doing assignments while taking a break from practices.

Hinding-hindi ko makakalimutan ang mga panahon na pinagsabay ko ang cheerdancing at badminton (senior year in SPCQ) dahil ang breaktime ko sa cheerdancing practice ay ginamit ko pa para mag-practice sa badminton.

Nandyang tamaan na ako ng bola ng volleyball sa mukha, dibdib at kung saan-saang pang parte ng katawan. Nandyang pumalo pa rin ako ng bola ng volleyball kahit may tahi na kamay ko dahil sa isang aksidente (na hindi related sa volleyball).

Nandyang nasapak ko ng raketa ng badminton ang sarili kong mukha para lang mataaman ang shuttlecock. Naranasan ko ring mag-half split para mahabol ang shuttlecock—buti na lang at cheerdancer din ako hehehe. At ang aking trademark, tuwing finals, may isa o dalawang beses na nabibitawan ko ang raketa ko habang tumitira (at lilipad siya sa ere) dahil sa sobrang pagod at pressure na nararamdaman. Naranasan ko na rin palang manakawan ng raketa (bwisit!).

Weddings where I sung:
Jon & Christine Baello, 1996
Chris & Shie Omnes, 2001

Corporate Events where I sung:

There are a couple of more other events I was able to sing but I can’t remember them exactly—I think I also sang during a friend’s debut, my ex-boss’ birthday and during our division’s Christmas party.

What I Remember:

Hinding-hindi ko makakalimutan ang naiwan kong sound system sa bahay namin sa Taytay, nang pagalitan ako ng tatay ko dahil ang aga-aga ay nagpa-practice na ako (nabubulahaw daw ang mga kapitbahay), nang mawalan ako ng boses sa mismong araw na kakanta ako sa kasal.

Nandyang naranasan kong mag-burp at maghikab habang kumakanta. Pag kulang sa aral ng kanta, syempre sintonado. Nandyang kumanta ako nang may sipon, ngo-ngo effect, kunwari nasal tulad ni Jaya hehehe. At naranasan ko na rin kumanta ng walang boses—yes, hangin lang ang lumalabas, buti na lang at kumpleto ang choir nang mga panahong iyon.

Dance

1992-19994, Dance Club, La Consolacion College Caloocan

What I Remember:
One word: Manoeuvres. Those who’ve known me since High School know my story about this famous group. I’m not going to tell the details now, past is past. Basta, they were a great influence to me when it came to dancing and for that I will always be grateful. Until now, I still remember what they’ve taught me, as in to the very core of me. They were really great teachers.

Looking back, I’m glad I did all these when I was younger. It sure has made me the person that I am now. I especially thank my parents for being so supportive and for letting me do whatever interests me.

Thru these activities, I have learned several disciplines I wasn’t able to acquire inside the classroom:

Time Management. Amidst juggling all my activities, I learned how to manage my time well so that my grades in school won’t suffer. I remember it was in high school when I started making To-do lists at home so I have an alloted time for practices and studies.

Self-discipline. I have my to-do list and I religiously follow my list. I sleep early to preserve my voice. I sleep early because I have a game the following day. I watch what I eat because it can either cause me a sore throat (no ice cream for two years) or make me gain weight which will be hard for me to dance or play.

Hard work. In every game, event or singing engagement, it’s all about hard work. Months and months of practice results to a better play of game. Months and months of singing rehearsals results to a better performance.

Excellence. Everytime I play in a game or sing on stage, I tell myself I’m only given one chance to win or to hit the notes right so I better do my best, my only best. Like in real life, there are no take twos.

Now that I was able to backtrack the things I used to do before, I can say that I really had a full life during my younger years. I feel a great sense of achievement and contentment that I was able to share my interests to other people. It feels good to know that youth was never wasted on me and that I was able to make good use of what God has given me.