By: Jasmin D. Apilado
It was the first day of our intensive
training and we were asked to share to the class who influenced us in becoming
the person we are today. The question absorbed me and made me reminisced my experiences
in this so called, “life”. The pain, happiness, failure and success molded me
into becoming who I am now.
I grew up in a simple and happy
family: a hard working father who provided our needs in every way that he
could; a loving mother who treated us as her treasures; an “ate” who taught me
how to write and read, whom I also learnt the essence of being patient; a
“kuya” who had been my shield whenever I’m in trouble; and a “bunso” who never
failed to make me smile in his own little ways. Indeed, ours is a portrait of a
wonderful family.
Everything was so fine then. The
feeling that I am having my family whom I could lean on made me confident
enough and turned me into a dependent being. The thought of having that time when
I have to stand and fight for my own never appeared in my mind.
I was 10 years young when, just like a
sleigh of the hand, I woke up with nothing. The scent of delicious foods my
mother usually prepares every morning vanished. The laughter that once filled
the house was gone and the sweet playful banter before bedtime disappeared. It
all started when my parents broke the vows they made in the altar. Their
relationship was shaken by a test and they just gave up easily hence they ended
up separating.
Life had been very hard then. As young
as 12, I was left hanging---too innocent to understand what was happening. I seldom
saw my parents. My sister, at the age of 17 went to Leyte and pursued her
studies with the help of my uncle. My older brother, only 15 that time stopped
studying and ended up working to sustain our needs to survive. I and my younger
brother stayed at our grandmother’s company.
I became the “ate” and “mama” to my
brother who was only 6 years old at that time. I took care of him trying to
cover up the absence of the kind of family he used to have. I tried to make him
feel that nothing changed. I smiled to hide the pain, I laughed to conceal the tear.
Time passed and I started to accept
the reality. Though there were times when I was thinking that everything was
just a dream and I’d wake up one day with my whole family beside me, as happy
as it used to be. But time continued rolling and I realized it was for real. There
was nothing I could do but to continue fighting and be strong.
Luckily, I was able to finish my
studies in high school in spite of what had happened. That was then the
beginning of another chapter of my life. I worked at different places to help
my grandmother and young brother who were expecting a lot from me.
I experienced working in a restaurant, serving
foods to the customers and washing the dishes. My earnings also served food to
our house’s table. I also worked at Manila repacking school supplies that sustained
my brother’s studies. I also got a job at Davao City in a gasoline station and
worked there for more than a year.
I stopped working when my father talked to me
and told me that he wanted me to continue my studies, a chance I never let go
instead I hold on to. So here I am, facing another challenge of my life-a
student who dreams to make a change and bring back what has been lost in our
family through education.
I acquired a lot of lesson from these
experiences. Each place I’d been from left a mark in my heart. Every people I’d
met along the way taught me a lesson as well. Moreover, in every pain I
experienced, I gained something. These all influenced me into becoming the
person I am today.
A tap in my shoulder and a whisper
“Jasmin, it’s your turn”, brought me back to reality. I was in our classroom
with my classmates’ eyes on me. I stood up and faced my classmates. “Who
influenced me? Well, if you’ll ask me…….”
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