WHO AM I?
Looking back at my life and the circumstances I am in right now will give a picture of what I have become as a person inside and out.
I am not a pretty and smart girl when I was younger, not that I profess I am the exact opposite right now but I have been pretty lucky to have been given the opportunities to improve myself and my craft.
My journey through life was not smooth sailing. It was something “for the books” so to speak. My father died when I was four years old, my mother pregnant with the third baby girl and unemployed. How she managed to survive life with odd jobs made me promise myself to work hard and eventually finish school to be able to help my family particularly my two sisters.
It was my mother’s decision to send me to Manila after graduating from elementary school to our relatives for me to continue my studies and be able to reach my dreams. At first I thought it was a cruel thing to do since I will be separated with my family and it means I have to fend for myself in a totally new environment and relatives I never knew.
My life with my relatives was not that easy. It was full of hardships having to work hard to earn my keep and repay them the favor for taking me in. It made me so angry at my mother for giving me to them and to my mother’s relatives for the bad treatment I am receiving which I tried to hide in silence. To top it all my mother remarried and I have two step brothers and two step sisters. In my solitude I asked God why it should happen to me and I felt so sad. But something inside of me whispers that God has a plan for me if not the best there is for me. It was my strong faith in God that made me hold on, be strong, to be patient and persevere. It was also my strong desire to prove myself capable and to realize my dream of having a college degree that served as my driving force to study hard even at times I do not have the money or “baon” for my food and school materials. I have to spend the whole Saturday to stay...
