SURIGAO CITY (MindaNews / 04 June) – I had the idea for this writing after intently reading my first-ever published article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer titled “Carpe diem,” which translates to “Seize the day.” As the title suggests, that is why I am here.
Last week, a classmate of mine, who is also one of my thesis partners, messaged me, asking what graduation gift I would like to receive, as we are graduating from college this week. I replied with a typical spiel, stating that anything that would bring me joy would do.
However, I couldn’t help but wonder why she asked me that. Shortly after I responded, she congratulated me. It instantly dawned on me that there must be something I did not know. I tried to ask her why she congratulated me and what was happening, but she remained silent.
While her congratulating me could be considered a possible response after revealing what I wanted for a graduation gift, pragmatically speaking, I knew there was more behind it. Still, I was too stunned to inquire further.
The following day, we were scheduled for a whole day of practice for our upcoming graduation ceremony. While we patiently waited for our assigned seats, a professor who was tasked with arranging seats for graduating students with Latin honors called my family name. Confusion clouded my mind.
Almost immediately, I approached the professor since she was holding papers, and eventually, I found my name on a paper with a label beside it that read “Cum Laude.” Yes, you read that correctly. I was completely floored. I would be graduating with Latin honors. I would be one of the seven luckiest in our department. Call me a hypocrite; the idea of graduating with such distinction never really occurred to me prior. Surely, I even asked myself multiple times, “Do I deserve that?” More surprising, it came to a point that I asked some of my classmates, and funnily enough, they thought I deserved it. Little did I know they already knew that big news a day before our graduation practice. What a surprise!
And if you’re curious about how I felt after everything, well, it made me discover the emotional high and that unexplainable happiness inside me. Perhaps my reaction mirrored that of a crowned beauty queen in a national pageant who had undergone intensive training or an athlete who won a medal in a sport. Just like them, there’s a story behind the victory; that’s the process somehow akin to mine. I was able to share a story about myself (more likely about me not graduating on time) on MindaNews (‘Graduating na kaw?’, 3/10/23), which you can search on Google for you to read, have references on, and perhaps know me e ven better.
Furthermore, if that particular classmate were to ask me again (at the moment) what I would like for a graduation gift, I could now give her a specific answer: to graduate with Latin honors, which I believe will be formally granted to me on June 6th. It is also a graduation gift I can give to myself, my family, and everyone dear to me, symbolizing years of hard work, dedication, and faith in God.
In conclusion, while I recognize the overwhelming sense of joy it brought me when I learned I would be graduating with Latin honors, I am not to say that that will be the “best” graduation gift for me. Because, in all honesty, the fact alone that I will be graduating from college, having survived, is already the best graduation gift after all the grueling years of schooling (not to mention since preschool).
(Jhon Steven C. Espenido, 23, writes from Surigao City.)
