stripes fever

my prince and i. yeah right, in my dreams. haha:)

"And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom."--- Anais Nin





second day of february.

bad trip

Our choir practice ended at 7:30 and I got home after an hour and a half. Argh. This day was quite tiring and the fact that something happened during my way home made me feel even more exhausted. Ok…so I rode an fx on my way home. I sat at the middle part and a man was sitting beside me. Hah! I hate him! Like hello, it was only me and him sitting on the car chair but I felt like ten people were beside me because he kept on pushing himself to me. Wah, I hate him! Well, I couldn’t and I wouldn’t tolerate his insolence, so with a tone little higher than the normal, I told him, “Excuse me, pwede po bang makiusog. Ang laki kaya ng space!” It’s good that he did move cause if he didn’t, he would wish he never rode that fx (hah, I have my file case with me, remember!)

Argh. Argh. Argh.

januarytwentyeighttwothousandseven.

*with my cousins ate mykz and kyla and my sister ate omi.:)*

the ballad of

There are 8 billion people in this world
8 billion lives are changing
Never felt so alone
Would you consider me inspite of this?
I'm always the one who loses
Would you make me better?
How, how, how will we make this work?
Why do you have to be so far?
It's all clear now
I m gonna keep you
Like flowing water into forever
That look is all I need to get by
Like living in some illusion
I never felt so alive
I know that there will be flaws around us
The silly wars that we'll be fighting
Yes, I'll be fighting
Into forever now
I'll be the one who holds you dear

There are 8 billion people in this world
8 billions lives are changing and you're the one I need.

*twilight*

perplexed?

I am not a fan of change.

Yet, it has been a part of my life...everyone's life, I guess...

distortion of things... unforeseen repercussions...

wah...

If the world would do its worst, I'll stumble and die. Yeah whatever! I want to recharge. This quandary lets me feel I'm alive...

but life is not at all, cruel.

There are times when my mind is incapable of knowing but when I become certain of what I feel, my actions will constantly dance and move forward. And that's a simple reason to smile:)

*If ever I have let myself go, nothing can be wrong, as long as I know how to get it back*

I shall know. Right?

the story behind the victories

For quite some time, the group was in a deep sleep. We were disorganized, apathetic, frigid. Until the drive for a change awaken us that we became passionate for the gift we are blessed with. For the past months now, with the leadership of Mrs. Jocelyn Carlos, the Manila Science High School has revived its glory. With all the victories the Chorale has earned, I would like to share some of my experiences and insights as a member of this group.

Awit Ko, Himig Mo: The Rotary District Chorale Contest

Before the semestral break, Mrs. Carlos informed us about the District Chorale Competition organized by the Rotary Clubs of Manila. Since it was the first competition the chorale would be participating after the group found itself in an inoperative state, we became very excited about it. However, our participation in this contest meant days of hard work since there were a lot of points that the group needed to improve on. Still, we all agreed to join the competition. With much anticipation, the group rehearsed for three days during the semestral break. The contest piece was “Minsan Lang Kitang Mamahalin” and we chose “Old Time Religion” as our choice piece. After the sem break, we allotted days for practice. The ‘hard work’ was indeed, seriously hard. Every morning, we had physical trainings which helped us improve our voices. We even vocalized while we were lying down on the floor of the school’s auditorium with three thick books on the top of our diaphragms. As the contest approached, the tension in us grew stronger. Conflicts even arouse few days before the contest.

November 11, 2006 finally came. It was the day we had all been waiting for. In the morning of that Saturday, we prepared ourselves for the contest. Some of the MAPEH teachers went to school to help Mrs. Carlos and extended their moral support to the group. With mixed feelings of joy and nervousness, we had our way to Emilio Aguinaldo College, the venue of the chorale competition. Before the program started, we had taken time to pray to God, thank Him for the opportunity He has given us, and asked for His guidance for the contest. The chorale competition was participated by fifteen schools from Manila as well as Pasay and Cavite. And then, the moment for us to perform finally came. We were so much inspired by the presence of a number of MaScian students, teachers, department heads, and parents who were there to support us. With confidence, we walked our way to the stage and gave our best performance as the eight group to present. After our performance, we all felt good and relieved.

The Manila Science High School Chorale was indeed very blessed to bag the second place in this Rotary District Chorale Competition. We were given twenty thousand pesos as the prize for the contest. We all went home with overflowing joy in our hearts.



Baywalk Chorale Competition

Weeks after winning in the Awit Ko, Himig Mo Rotary District Chorale Contest, we were informed about another competition in which we were encouraged to join. It was the annual high school chorale competition at Baywalk. The group really had the pursuit to participate in the said contest but we had conflict with our schedule. Since we were preparing for the Rizal Music Theater Competition, we were afraid we might not have enough time to practice for this contest. Nevertheless, with much faith and enthusiasm, we decided to join the competition. Yet again, our participation in this contest meant another days of hard slog, a harder one actually since we were preparing for two competitions at the same time. During these days, we really became very much tired. The first thing we thought of doing the moment we arrive home after our rehearsals was to rest and sleep. We chose “Jingle Bells Calypso” as our choice piece while “Ang Pasko ay Sumapit” was the contest piece.

The elimination for this contest was held one Tuesday night at the Raja Sulayman Park at Baywalk. We went there with a little confidence because we were not really that prepared since we were not able to concentrate on this competition. However, we tried to give our best as we perform. The program lasted for almost four hours and all of us were so tired and sleepy at the same time. In spite of this, the program was worth waiting for because we were one of the qualified schools to perform in the finals.
The grand finals was held last December 22, 2006 in the same venue. That Saturday, we went early to school since some of the supervisors from NCR would come to check our presentation in the Rizal Theater Competition. Right after our practice for the musical theater, we prepared ourselves for the chorale competition to be held in the evening of that day. It was indeed a very exhausting day for us. Our voices were tired as well. Yet we went to Raja Sulayman Park and forgot about all our weariness and anxieties. We were the third group out of the seven other schools to perform. Once again, we were so much encouraged by the presence of MaSci students, teachers and parents who were there to watch and cheer for us. During that night, we gave our best shot.
To be the Grand Champion of the Baywalk High School Chorale Competition truly was a blessing for each of us. As the prize for the competition, we were rewarded certificates and twenty five thousand pesos.



Rizal Festival of Excellence

The highlight of the Manila Science High School Chorale’s year was the Rizal Musical Theater Competition. To represent NCR and the cluster region was a very overwhelming experience for each of us. Truly, we had sacrificed a lot of things for this competition: We failed to attend our classes, we rehearsed during weekends and holidays, we even turned down our opportunity to go to Singapore! Yet, every little sacrifice that we did for this competition was worth it. We faced a lot of conflicts which almost made us give up. But, we never did.

For weeks, we practiced for this competition. It was not easy for us to come up with this kind of presentation since not even one of us had a background on theater production. Nevertheless, we were able to make something out of our own skills and talents. The music was composed by some of the choir members while the script was written by Mrs. Carlos. Our musical theater’s theme was Isang Rizal: Noon, Ngayon, at Bukas. Here’s a glimpse of what we experienced during the Rizal Festival of Excellence:

December 27
We went to school early in the morning to prepare ourselves for the competition. In the afternoon, we checked in at the Bayview Park Hotel. Then, we were informed that only 25 participants were allowed to perform in the Musical Theater. We found that a memo was sent to the office of NCR but we were never told about this information. We were so frustrated and we almost lose hope. In the evening, we had a meeting where we decided how to resolve the conflict.

December 28
We woke up early in the morning and went to MaSci to make some changes in our presentation since only 25 participants were allowed to perform. In the afternoon, we went to the GSIS Theater for the final rehearsal. We slept early that night.

December 29
It was the contest day. At 4am, we started to prepare for the competition. Then, all of the five groups of the Musical Theater, Northern Luzon, Southern Luzon (We represent this region.) Visayas, Northern Mindanao, and Southern Mindanao went to the GSIS Theater. Our nervousness was incomparable. We were the last group to perform. After our performance, we were quite disappointed of how the technical points of the production turned out. When the winners of the competition were announced, our hearts overflowed with happiness when we learn that we won the second place. We received certificates and a cash prize of fifty thousand pesos. Almost everyone cried for joy. We prayed to God and thank him for everything. In the evening, we went back to GSIS Theater for the Grand Awards Night.

December 30
We went home bringing with us the fruitful experience we had.




I really learned a lot of things from my experiences as part of the Manila Science High School Chorale. I guess all the sacrifices that we made were nothing compared to the unforgettable experience we had. From these experiences, I was able to gain friends and had deeper relationships with the other members of the choir. I learned the value of discipline, cooperation, teamwork, and the value of time. I also learned to face challenges no matter how hard they are and be thankful for the gifts that God has blessed me with. Truly, 2006 was a great year for the Manila Science High School Chorale. With all our victories, we would like to extend our gratitude to everyone who supported and inspired us in many ways. Above all, we owe them all to the One who never failed us, the Creator of Music, the binding force which unites us in spite of our differences. To God be the Glory!