is speech was delivered by the author during the Commencement Exercises of the FEU-FERN

Basic Education Department on March 28, 2014.

Five years ago, I spoke on this same spot to deliver a message to my batchmates, the graduating
class of 2009. Things were very different then – I was a young, naïve and immature student who
had no idea of what might happen after my graduation. Contrary to what my batchmates thought
then, I did not know what to do with my life. I did not know what course to take in college or
what career to pursue after. I never thought that the choices I made and the career I chose would
bring me back here to this same podium.

I know that most of you, graduates, now have the same dilemmas that I once faced. What
happens after high school graduation? What will I do in college? What does the future hold for
me? But don’t worry! Do not be overly hesitant and anxious. You are at a crossroad in your life.
You should be excited of what lies ahead.

I am a storyteller. As a journalist, I tell stories of people, significant events and issues that affect
society. Today, I will share some valuable lessons I learned in life by telling five stories – stories
that will provide a picture of what life is like in college and in the outside world. Stories that
will, hopefully, help you decide in the decisions you will face in the future. I hope the following
stories will disturb you and give you the courage to face the future.

1) A story of the bigger picture

The first story is that of an overseas Filipino worker named Arthur Villeta. I met Mang Arthur
when I was doing a story on soup kitchens in Manila.

For the past decades, Mang Arthur served as the Royal Fashion Designer of the Brunei Royal
Family. He was living the life. He had a high salary. He had the favor of the royals.
Unfortunately, a stroke ended his career in 2011. After which, his life became a downward
spiral. He came back to the Philippines hoping to retire and recuperate in the loving company of
his family. But that did not happen. When he had no more financial capability, his family left
him. Now, he roams the streets of Manila looking for employment so he can stand up and regain
his pride. He goes around soup kitchens and feeding programs so he won’t die of hunger.

He was crying while he was telling me his story. He never got any support from his relatives,
even from the government. He told me, “When we are outside the country, we are considered
heroes because our dollars prop up our economy. Now that we are useless, they don’t care about
us anymore. Hindi totoong mga bayani kami.” (We're not really heroes.) Mang Arthur is not
alone. If you roam the streets of Manila, you can see so many hungry and homeless people,
former OFWs or not.

Graduates, we all know that we face a country that is full of problems. Although our economy
has been on a boom for the past years, its effects have not trickled down to those who need it
most, the poorest of the poor. Most of our countrymen experience extreme poverty and
helplessness. Families are separated because parents are forced to go abroad so that they can
support their children. I’ve seen fathers cry because they cannot provide for their families. This
is while senators and corrupt politicians splurge on expensive condominiums and thousand-
dollar meals using the taxes that should’ve been for the poor.

Poverty, hunger, and corruption is widespread in the Philippines. That is a fact and we all know
that. The important question that we should be asking is: What are we doing to help our
countrymen? What are we doing to address the problems?

Mang Arthur’s story is not isolated. His story is a story of a people struggling to survive. His
story is the story of millions of Filipinos living below the poverty line.

Dear graduates, you experience so many privileges that people like Mang Arthur don’t have. As
a part of a privileged class, you have the responsibility to help our countrymen in need. And I’m
not talking about mere financial support, as that is not sustainable. Real help is pushing for and
demanding good and honest leadership from our government. Real help is creating jobs that will
uplift the dignity of your countrymen. Real help is choosing not to be corrupt, not to cheat and
not to lie even when everyone else is doing it. Real help is choosing to be excellent in your
studies and representing the Philippines well in whatever country you go to. Real help is serving
your country and countrymen in whatever career you pursue.

In life, it is important to always see the bigger picture and the bigger context. We are all
interconnected and our actions will always affect those around us. The challenge is to always see
beyond ourselves – to step back and analyze whether our choices will affect the greater good or
not. In your future decisions, I hope you will always remember people like Mang Arthur,
remember your countrymen, remember your country. We are the future leaders of the
Philippines. Our decisions will decide the fate of millions. The first story is a story of the bigger
picture, of interconnectedness.

2) A story of gratitude

The second story is the story of a teacher, Mrs. Lilia Diaz. I wrote a profile about her last June
2013.

Nanay Lilia, as her students fondly call her, has been a teacher for the past 70 years. She taught
at the St. Ignatius Academy in Culion, Palawan, a Jesuit-run private institution in the small
island. The choice to stay and teach in Culion was a difficult decision. For those of you who
don’t know, Culion was once the largest leper colony in the world. It was called the ‘land of the
living dead.’ Noong panahon ng mga Kastila at Amerikano, doon tinatapon lahat ng mga
ketongin. Kapag sinabi noon na galing kang Culion, pinandidirihan ka. Halos hindi tao ang
turing sa’yo. (Lepers were sent to Culion during the Spanish and American periods. When
people know that you're from Culion, they abhor you. It's almost as if you're not treated as a
human being.) No teacher would choose to stay and teach the children. Hence, the life of the
people there became an endless cycle of poverty, pain, and helplessness. Nanay Lilia saw the
pain of the people.

Despite the low salary, and the stigma against the people on the island, Nanay Lila chose to stay
and teach in the school. Because of the difficulty in making ends meet, she put up a stall to sell
banana-cue and other snacks during weekends. In addition to her financial difficulties, her
neighbors would insult her. “You’re a teacher and you’re selling banana-cue? Why are you
putting up with the difficulty? Why stay when you can teach in other schools with a higher
salary?” Nanay Lilia retired a few years ago but she cannot let go of teaching. Now, she goes to
isolated islands and teaches the illiterate natives, the Tagbanuas.

When I interviewed her, I asked her, “Why did you stay? What did you hold on to?” I was awe-
struck when she answered, “I stayed because I wanted to help the people of Culion. I wanted to
help heal the people of the stigma they face every day. I wanted to see my students rise above
their difficulties.” In 2006, because of the hard work of people like Nanay Lilia, Culion was
declared leprosy-free.

The story of Nanay Lilia is the story of almost every teacher you’ve ever had in your life. Her
story is the story of every teacher in the Philippines. Teaching is a very difficult profession. No
one gets financially rich from being a teacher. But teachers choose to teach because they want to
form the next generation of Filipinos. They are dedicating their hopes and their lives in their
students’ future. They teach because they know that it is their role in shaping a better
community, a better Philippines.

The story of teachers is a story of gratitude. You will never reach your goals if you don’t learn to
be grateful to those who have helped you along the way. Know that in your journey you are
never alone and your successes will never be yours alone, too.

Despite the many problems we face in our country, we have people like Nanay Lila, and our
teachers - modern day heroes who are willing to give their lives to help improve society by
passing what they know to the youth. We all have that teacher whose lessons in class and in life,
we will never forget. Before you leave later, hug them, thank them, and promise them that you
won’t let them down.

In making future decisions, never forget to look back at those who formed and educated you.
Your teachers have invested in you to become not only successful but righteous Filipinos. Do not
waste their investments. The second story is a story of gratitude, of investment.

3) A story of being grounded

The third story is the story of a 40-year-old single mother named Susie. She was a faithful house
wife, who dedicated her entire life to taking care of her husband and children. Despite her best
efforts to keep her family intact, her husband left her and her 3 children after 16 years of
marriage, a few years back. You can imagine her devastation when her husband left. She had no
job, no means of making a living, nothing.

Pushed down by life’s ugly reality, Susie could have chosen to quit. Instead, she chose to stand
up and fight back. Using her entrepreneurial skills and the help of her own mother, Susie faced
the struggles and started a business in hopes of creating a better future for her children. She did
not fight for herself. She fought for her children, her only reason for living.
Susie says she and her 3 children now have better lives than when her husband was there. She
proved to be a better provider and a better father figure to her kids.

Mrs. Susie Lozada is my mother. Her story is the story of our parents and their struggle to give
us the best future they can. They are willing to sacrifice everything just to give us the lives we
deserve. They face life’s challenges because they have us in mind.

Graduates, always listen to your parents’ advice. You might not always agree and they might not
always be right, but their experience gives them valuable wisdom that we can learn from. As
cliché as it might sound, they’ve all been there and done that. When life knocks you down and
you're faced with so many problems and tough decisions, you will always have your parents to
go back to. They will always be there to support you – to celebrate with you in your successes,
and cry with you in your failures.

Our parents represent our core, our home, our sanctuary. Always have that something and that
someone to go back to. When you’ve gone so far and you feel so strained, your core, and your
grounding will help you find your way back.

Aside from being a story of gratitude and investment, the story of parents is a story of being
grounded. In life, it is important to always know where you stand and where you came from.
Even when you’ve achieved so much, always take time to look back, revisit your core and your
history. Keep your feet firmly on the ground and your eyes fixed on your dreams. As the Danish
Philosopher Soren Kierkegaard said, “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be
lived forward.”

4) A story of dreaming big

The fourth story is like any other students’ story. It’s my story.

When I graduated from high school, I was confident that I’d conquer college. I did not know
what was in store for me and I was excited because for the first time in my life, I was clueless.

When I entered Ateneo, I was devastated. For one, I was intimidated with my blockmates. I was
a scholar and my allowance was only a third of what they were getting. I was used to being the
star student since elementary. But I was now in an academic environment where all my
classmates were Valedictorians, Salutatorians and Honorable mentions. How could I be
outstanding in a school where everyone is excellent? I also had a difficult time with my subjects.
As shameful as it might sound, I failed my first Math long exam despite being ‘Best in Math’ for
3 years in high school. I lost my confidence and decided that I just wanted to be a ‘normal’
student – no goals of graduating with honors, no plans of joining an organization. An Ateneo
diploma would suffice, I told myself. I luckily got into the Dean’s List during the first semester
because of Typhoon Ondoy and the teachers were generous in giving grades.

My perspective changed, however, during the second semester. As part of our homeroom class,
we had an exposure trip to Foundling Home, an institution housing homeless boys from Manila.
I met Junjun.
Junjun was 5 years old then. He was battered by his father and his mother could not support him
so she gave him away. Despite being 5 years old, the only words he knew then was ‘Kuya’ and
‘pahingi.’ This is partly because he had not been to school and partly because of the
maltreatment he experienced from his parents. The bruises on his arms and legs were still visible
when I saw him. I only spent half a day in Foundling Home yet I saw something in Junjun that
changed my whole perspective in life. In Junjun, I saw life’s reality – not everyone was as
privileged as I. Some children go through very horrible circumstances because of poverty and
many other factors.

I was so touched that afternoon that when I came home, I asked my mom if we could adopt
Junjun. Given our circumstances then, my mother, of course, declined my request. The next time
I visited Foundling Home, JunJun was already gone. The administrator said he was taken away
by his mom but some said he ran away. I never saw Junjun again.

I spent only a few hours with Junjun but he destroyed my life for the better. Before meeting him,
I just wanted to graduate and land a high paying job and be rich after graduation. But that has
changed. Not that I don’t want to be rich, anymore, but I gained a sense of purpose. Despite the
temptation to take a managerial job in the corporate world - not that there’s anything wrong with
that - I chose to pursue a career in journalism because I saw it as the best way I can contribute to
society. I want to tell stories that will inspire and anger people to act. I want to influence policy
and people so that kids like Junjun will have a better future. This was my part in creating a better
Philippines.

Dear graduates, life often allows you to see a glimpse of what we call the Face – a face that
shows other people’s suffering and pain. When you see this Face, you are compelled to act with
a sense of purpose and higher understanding. I saw that face not inside the classroom but in
Junjun. I think a lot of us gets a glimpse of that Face in our every day lives - that old lady
begging for alms in the overpass, that street kid you saw sniffing rugby, that janitor who works
so hard to feed his family. But not everyone is able to respond to the call of the Face they see. Is
it because we are too attached to comfort? Is it because we are afraid to see their pain that we
choose to desensitize ourselves from them? Minsan, hindi natin sila kayang tignan sa mata dahil
sobrang nakakasilaw. May batang kumakatok sa bintana ng sasakyan pero pinipili na lang
nating hindi sila tignan. We feel the pain but we shut it away.
My story is not important by itself. My story is just one among many that weave each other
around what it means to be a teacher. But my story, as well as the much greater stories of my
fellow finalists, gives this prize a human face, -50 faces, actually- a blow of living breath to the
real story behind: Varkey Foundation is out to make the teaching profession one of the most
prestigious around the world.

It is vastly said that teachers are “key” in society. At least from the lips out, nobody could doubt
that educators are truly important. But in reality, being a teacher is not exactly what many people
have in mind when they think about a successful career. Like being a doctor, or a lawyer. Well,
at least in my home country, Mexico.

I did not dream about becoming a teacher myself. Oh yes, of course, in my childhood play I was
often a teacher. A good one. I sat all my dolls in a perfectly lined little classroom made with
blankets and pillows, and “taught them to read”. Oh, what a beauty. My perfect plastic students
were always smiling, always paying attention, and yes sir, always quiet. Well, it was kind of
boring too. I wished that my dolls could come alive and misbehave a little. Just a little.

But then I grew up. Fast. And by the end of High School, I was contemplating a different career
path. “I want to be a writer”, I told anyone who cared to ask the perennial question: What are you
going to do? So I wanted to study literature. And become a poet, a novelist. Well, you can guess
the reaction. “Being a writer is difficult. You are going to starve to death. And just about a
second before perishing of hunger, you will have to become a teacher, you will teach Spanish in
an obscure and forgotten school somewhere”.

“You will have to become a Teacher”. Like some kind of punishment for failure.

Well, life took me on a hilly, curvy road. Oddly enough, first I became a teacher, and then,
precisely because I was a teacher, I became a writer.

In my youth, one of my poetry books was published. I even won a national poetry contest. My
poems were included in a handful of anthologies. But no, I was not able to make a living out of
my writing. At least not then.

My road to teaching was sort of accidental. When I became a mother, I got a deep longing for
teaching my children about all the beautiful things in our world. Art, music, books, culture. I
have always been an avid reader, and I yearned for my kids to derive joy from a good book. So
my children became my first students, and, may I say, my first teachers -on how to teach. As
they got older, I was not able to find in my hometown the kind of school I had envisioned for
them. So I founded my own. And that is how Colegio Valle de Filadelfia was born.
From my childhood bedroom with the quiet dolls, I moved to my living room with eventually
three chatty, adventurous little ones, and later to the real classroom: preschool, elementary,
junior high. My school grew alongside my children. Valle de Filadelfia extended to other
Mexican cities and even to another country: Costa Rica.

Years went by, and many projects took shape. When our secondary school opened, I began to
teach History and Geography, and for that purpose I created a complete series of online curricula
and materials -in a flipped classroom manner. From the very beginning, these resources have
been freely available for teachers and students from all over the country. All the videos are
posted on YouTube, and all the materials can be downloaded from our school’s website. Today I
teach technology to 8th and 9th graders. It’s so much fun to learn alongside them. From
producing videos to designing websites to experimenting with apps and video games, we are all
having a blast.

One of my most beloved projects has been creating an early education curriculum to focus on
reading, writing and growing up global. Beginning in Preschool, our children explore a different
culture or country every month. This same project includes opportunities to discover and enjoy
diverse art and music. At school, our kids learn to play the violin, to paint, as they also embark in
different workshops according to their interests.

In 2014, after seven years of knocking on several publisher’s doors, Pearson Education Mexico
published my series of textbooks for pre-schoolers and their educators. A total of 12 books were
born last summer. I could never have achieved this without the experience gained after years of
teaching. The books are now in several Latin American countries, and we even shipped some to
Spain.