Landing in the Real World

Valedictory Address

By: Richelle H. Verdeprado

(delivered last March 26, 2011 during the Commencement Exercises of the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos)

University religious and lay administrators headed by our president, Rev. Fr. Dionisio C. Cachero, OAR, faculty, parents, guests, and fellow graduates, a pleasant evening to all of you!

Before coming up with this speech, I needed to spend some moments of silence. I prayed that I will be able to put my thoughts and feelings in a way that the rest of you can also reflect on your personal journey. I know, what I needed was something they call - inspiration. And then, I remembered you all, my fellow graduates. And I got, more than enough of the inspiration I needed.

I am inspired knowing that we did not give up despite experiencing frustrations, poverty, and failures. I am inspired seeing how we survived the storms and quakes of our lives.  I will always be proud of our batch, because we have proven that if we really want to, we can, we will, no matter how hard the road seems to be; even if we do not have everything we need.

Now I realized why it was not easy for me to write this. It’s because what’s been mentioned here did not come after a moment of silence, but after several years of taking a journey. Our college life was a flight we had to take because we wanted to arrive in certain destinations and although we had individual itineraries, we had met somewhere because we chose the same airline to give us wings, to make us fly- the University of Negros Occidental- Recoletos.

This has been a journey and in a journey, we cannot carry all of the material things we have no matter how important they are for us. But it’s more than just possessions. Most of us had to leave our homes, our families and many persons we love. Or in some cases, we were the ones being left behind. But that did not mean we forgot them. We always had held them in our hearts and it has been their love that fueled us again and again.

There was this girl who could have died the day before she delivered her speech for her graduation in elementary. She was almost hit by a bus when she was crossing the high way in Himamaylan City but a miracle happened as the bus stopped just inches before her. After that, whenever her life was threatened, she became more aware of it. She then remembered how unstable life has been for her in the past, how she would have to sleep in the streets as her mother was selling bananas in the sidewalk, how she had experienced shaking while taking exams because she had eaten nothing, how she had to quarrel with her sister over a piece of food, how she would come to school wearing a borrowed pair of shoes and a handed down uniform that was not her size.

At 16, when her high school graduation came and after working hard, she would be giving a speech again. She was looking for someone whom she would love to honor on that special day of her life because for the past years he had never attended even one of her Recognition Day. She kept on looking for him- her dearest father, but failed to find him because he already died months before her graduation.    It was not easy for her but she had to move on. She consoled herself knowing that standing beside the podium, watching her closely, and finally attending a very special day in her life was the soul of the man who had faced all the pains and worked so hard for their family. She then felt relieved. And her story did not end there.

Ladies and gentlemen, that girl did not die before because God planned that she will stand with you here today and speak about her life. Yes, when our lives are being threatened, we become more aware of it and I mean not only physical accidents but circumstances which could have broken us and turned our paths to destruction. But, I had realized through these years that we have the power within to turn those dark histories and herstories into a burning bonfire of inspiration that would be our passport into becoming more determined persons.  God does not want us to suffer forever. He would use people as His instruments to tell us ‘yes, you are on the right path, keep going my child.’

As this journey will soon be landing, another one is waiting to take off. But we will never reach this stage of our life, if not for our teachers, friends, family and all the people who are always there for us. If not because of them, we won’t be here today.

I want to say thank you to my family especially to my mother who sacrificed a lot for me, to my father whose memories never failed to strengthen me, to my relatives who made my life more meaningful especially to Tito Serio’s family, to the Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family Home who welcomed me with love and understanding especially to Sister Alma Alovera, Sister Dora Hernandez, Sister Jenemer Torio, ate Amie Magalona, mother Gina and everyone in our big family, to the staff of Misyon Magazine especially to Father Sean Coyle for being more than an editor to my articles but for being a father to me. Thank you for your love, guidance and appreciation. I also want to give a million thanks to the people making up the Tolentine Star publication for being a family to me, for staying with me through ups and downs and for making my college life more than memorable. Thank you also to Calvary Chapel for without your help, I will not be able to know about the beauty and nobility of  social work, to the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women-Asia Pacific and Youth and Students Advancing Gender Equality for intensifying my love for peace and justice, to my fellow Gawad Kalinga nation builders for stirring me with that culture of caring and sharing and that spirit of volunteerism, to my fellow Ayala Young leaders for opening doors of adventurous servant leadership journey, to our dear Alma Mater , to my fellow social work students for being my ever-loving company all these years, to all of my friends who are like brothers and sisters, to the College of Arts and Sciences especially to our dean Mrs. Nieves Pepito, to my mentors Ms. Maribel Gonzales, Atty. Nalumen, Ms. Locsin, Dr. Anita Rabago, Ms. Jocilyn Gallos, Mrs. Olive Jamandre, Ms. Magbanua, Ms. Dela Rosa, Ms. Ivy Aboy, Sir Flores, Mrs. Susana Caler, to Sir Carlos Eduardo Legaspi for trusting my capacity and to the rest of the faculty who I can’t mention anymore, thank you so much for believing in me and for imparting the knowledge and skills you have to all of us. We dedicate to you our success and we will thank you forever.

It has been considered a cliché to say that poverty should not be used as an excuse not to achieve something, but let my life be another testimony to this statement. In my college life, I had experienced staying in several houses, asking the help of so many people for a shelter, before finding a true home with the sisters. If I stopped along the way, just because somebody discouraged or misjudged me or just because all I had was three pesos in my pocket or just because I did not had school shoes to wear, then I had not given justice to the life that has been extended. Don’t give up and be easily shaken because there are so many more in life that are not yet revealed to you- things, events, people and feelings you will only attain, experience, meet and feel if and only if, you will survive what you are handling now.

College life was not boring. We survived those years because they were not all difficult. We survived happily because we know when to chill out, when to spend some funny moments with friends perhaps at UNO-R park, piazza, or computer shops. We might leave UNO-R but we can no longer get rid of all its memories-be they good or not so good. Years from now, I’m sure we will be recalling how we would sometimes fall asleep  in the library and wake up with an aching back, or announce a no class day on our own just because a teacher was fifteen minutes late and afterwards regretted what we’ve done, and then, learned a lesson. We may laugh every time we will bring to mind how some of our classmates would excitedly relay to us how they successfully entered UNO-R without the guards noticing that they were not wearing ID’s or they were just in slippers.

 This is a journey and in a journey, turbulence would really come. Hence we should continue nourishing our minds with knowledge and skills, our hearts with authentic relationships and our soul with constant interaction with God. As our dean Mrs. Pepito told me, we cannot truly get away from our past, but we can use them as our stepping stone because without our past, we will not be who we are today. I will never get tired of looking back at how I would have to study under the shades of the street lights because our electric connection has been cut again. That experience had made me value more the opportunity to have a good education after several shortcomings and sacrifices and had made me value every person I met along that journey. Because of poverty, I had known what the words responsibility and appreciation truly mean. Seeing children helping their parents in the sidewalks would forever remind me of my own childhood and how I learn the other side of life. Seeing graduates like you offering your diplomas to your parents and to all the people who had been with you through thick and thin, would continually give me the inspiration more than what I need. Fellow graduates, I hope that you will later give these significant people in your lives the tightest hug you could ever give and thank them again and again for all their love and sacrifices.

As we fly and hold on to our dreams, let us remember to stay in God’s path and to remain humble. Let’s continue learning and let us be agents of change for the transformation of our society.  There are so many good things waiting to be done for the nation and as we do these, let us be brave and inspired knowing that God has wonderful plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and future. Fasten your seat belt with character because there would be several connecting flights for us to take before finally discovering where we truly belong. And remember that the airline we have chosen, the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos, would always love to see us again in our future flights, for us to look back with a fulfilled self and a heart very willing to serve.

Congratulations Batch 2011! We have just arrived in the real world in real time.