“Don’t Count The Days, Make The Days Count” – How I Spent My Pre-Grad Week

1 year left, 4 months, 2 months, 3 weeks, 2 weeks and then 1 week and then finally 1 day and then, here it is today, the day of graduation.

They told us not to count the days but to make the days count. And this past week, I tried to just forget about everything else and try to spend each moment with the people who have made this past school year, actually, my entire high school life a surreal and memorable one.

This past week was filled with different outings, hang-outs, reunions and events that can actually in a way sum up what high school has been about for me. Even the 3 day graduation practices we had were moments I got to spend with my friends talking about past high school memories and at the same time, future plans for not only this summer but for college as well.

Basketball – First time in a long time

Right after graduation practice ended, a few friends and I decided to hit the court and play some ball. I honestly wasn’t even sure why I was playing when I haven’t even gotten surgery for my torn ACL. Yet even if my movement was very limited, I still enjoyed myself so much as I ran the court, shouted taunts, dribbled that ball and took a shot.

Because basketball will always be part of me! Missed this game so much!

Simply put, I was reminded of all the days I spent shooting hoops with my friends and playing those full-court games with them. I was reminded of the beauty of basketball and why I loved this game so much. And maybe the biggest reason why is the shared bond you get to build with the people you play with.

2013 – A year of lows, A year of highs, A YEAR TO REMEMBER!

I sit here wondering how Christmas could fly by so quickly this year that I didn’t even feel the Christmas vibes at all. Then suddenly, it’s just a few hours before the start of the new year then it’s already the new year, yet how did I spend this day and the last few days at that? Glued to my laptop, drafting up essay after essay in search for the perfect combination of words that would encapsulate my first 18 years of living as I wrote my personal statements for college applications.

I guess that as this year comes to a close and another new year starts, it’s just right that I actually take a break first from finishing all my College applications and pause for a moment to look back at what an incredible year it has been.

A year of extreme lows and extreme highs, a year like no other indeed 🙂

Who would’ve imagined that my lowest moment would catapult me into a much bigger world where I got to venture into new countries and exchange stories with newfound friends?

Honestly, the year 2013 has been my most memorable year so far. From experiencing a right of passage in Prom to attending the Ateneo Chemistry Camp to all the SAT review sessions to tearing my ACL to joining Debate to writing for Inquirer to starting my own business to all the other experiences and moments that I enjoyed with both new and old friends alike, this year truly has been a year like no other and I’m glad, I can one day look back at my blog thankful for every single moment of this year.

2013 truly has been one hell of a ride. As I scroll down right now and look through my blog posts, I can’t help but feel nostalgic as I remember all the laughter and the tears this year has brought me.

Yet in all these moments were silver linings that have ultimately made me realize that anything is possible in this world for life is what we make it – something I will keep in mind in the new year, which will hopefully be just as memorable or even more. Ultimately, no matter how dim and hopeless a moment can be, there’s always light at the end of the tunnel for things do work out for the better!

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

My Prometheus Cup Adventure and A little bit of Hide and Seek :)

As I sit here, a week after Prometheus Cup, I can’t help but look back and poignantly remember how I excited I was as we flew to Singapore, yet in a blink of an eye, it’s already one week since Prometheus Cup ended and here I am back to the everyday grind of school work, projects, review classes and what not. I miss the experience so much that I guess it’s just right that I take a walk down memory lane and relive the wonderful adventure I had in Prometheus Cup!

Just right before we flew to Singapore 😀

It’s these trips abroad that make high school such an adventure. It’s not everyday you get a chance to be able to represent your school in international competitions. Yet, the excitement, pressure and anxiety can be so overwhelming that you get out of character at some points in time.

They say that your true character is tested when you’re in your hardest moments. For us Xaverian, Prometheus Cup was a character building experience that really humbled a lot of us and taught us the importance of teamwork, patience, hard work, and most importantly, appreciation and gratefulness.

My First and Last Philippine Schools Debating Championship (PSDC)

Philippine Schools Debating Championship (PSDC)

It’s become a ritual of mine to write about a debate tournament experience one week after the tournament itself. It’s always fun to look back at these tournaments because you start to realize that it wasn’t just a tournament, but a growing experience as well. More than just the pressure packed debates and headaches, the little moments of laughter you spend with your teammates are moments that make these tournaments so surreal.

With the Xavier Contingent right before the start of PSDC….the incredible company is what makes being part of the debate team so surreal!

Last week, from Nov. 9-11, the Xavier team participated in another tournament, the Philippine Schools Debating Championship (PSDC) which is hosted annually by the Ateneo Debate Society. PSDC is a national tournament that brings together debaters from schools from all over the Philippines for a 3 day tournament where anything and everything can happen.

What doesn’t break you only makes you stronger

Coming out of HKDO, I thought that I’d be able to do just as good in PSDC but reality struck quickly in the first few rounds of PSDC as my team quickly fell into a hole. It was really disheartening and to be honest, during the fourth round, I was feeling really down already. I thought that we probably wouldn’t break anymore. Then I realized that all I could do was just give it my all and pray for the best.

My Hong Kong Debate Open 2013 Experience – More Than Just Winning Debates

The HKDO cover photo from the HKDO facebook page shows just how diverse the teams were!

I’ve always dreamed of winning an international competition and although, I fell one step short last week during the Hong Kong Debate Open (HKDO), I’ve got to say that all the learnings, insights, memories and experiences I got from HKDO more than made up for the loss.

It’s been a week since HKDO but it’s only now that I’ve found time to look back at the experience and appreciate the entity of the event. It’s really amazing how I got to partner with one of the greatest Filipino debaters of the past decade, Kip, who is also my school team’s debate coach.

It’s not everyday that you get to partner with one of the most revered and prominent debaters in the Philippines. When the idea of partnering with Kip, my debate coach, for an open tournament presented itself, I knew that I just had to take the chance. Being that I’m just four months into debating, I still have a lot to learn and honestly, there’s no better way to get better at something than by learning from the best!

Making it to the Grand Finals actually looks just like a bonus when compared to everything I learned from this entire experience! 😀

How A Not So Ordinary Article Became The No. 1 Read

Hundreds of comments, thousands of shares, top reads for the last 7 days, top 5 reads in the last 30 days, who would’ve imagined that a simple story about a high school student’s experience bagging in a SM supermarket immersion would generate this much attention.

What started out as my friends just thanking me for using their picture quickly escalated in a matter of days into the talk of the down. I was honestly surprised as my parents were telling me how much shares it was generating. At the start, I was also shocked that my article was actually getting comments. Then, on one night, my friend just messaged me to check out the Carlos Celdran post and the rest is history. Suddenly, overnight, my article became the top reads of not only the day but also the week.

(The article is seen here: http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/131783/my-stint-as-an-sm-grocery-bagger)

Was the number one read for quite some time!! Really shocking and surreal!

Social media has truly transformed the way we live our lives. In a matter of days, my SM immersion article had gotten so much attention that my friends would talk about comments that I never even heard of. For instance, just the other day, when we were debating about education, my friend found a way to use my SM immersion article as an example.

In A Blink Of An Eye, We’re Half-way Through

It’s been an incredibly tiring week like no other, zapping the every ounce of energy I had. But in a blink of an eye, it’s already sem-break — one semester over, one semester to go. The sem-break couldn’t have been timelier.

The 2nd quarter just like the 1st quarter of my Senior Year has been simply amazing. At first, I thought that my first quarter couldn’t be matched. With my trips to Singapore and Thailand and numerous other conferences and tournaments and memorable experiences, I was resigned to the fact that my 2nd quarter wouldn’t be as surreal as my first quarter. But to my surprise, my 2nd quarter was just as magical and in some aspects even more so.

When you have your grad-picture taking, you know graduation is coming soon….

From studying and taking the SAT subject tests (particularly my US history experience :)), participating in the SM Immersion, going through the Fully Alive Retreat, generating a lot of discussion and attention with my Inquirer Article, the launch of Project Jeep by Green Team, and the countless of invaluable memories in between, the 2nd quarter has managed to to surprise me in almost every possible way. All these experiences of mine weren’t just fun and memorable, they were also full of numerous life lessons and realizations that will surely help me in the final two quarters of my Senior Year!

Living on the Margin – A 1st Quarter to Remember!

This article is taken from the Philippine Daily Inquirer http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/125073/how-i-learned-to-live-on-the-margin

THE AUTHOR’S collection of “surreal”moments during the first quarter DAVID ONGCHOCO

The first quarter of my senior year has just ended, and up to now, I still can’t believe that so much has happened in less than three months.

Quite honestly, I never expected to be able to go through these novel and unique experiences. From traveling to Singapore and Thailand to attending the Philippine Model Congress and my first-ever press conference on Kobe Bryant, the first quarter was filled with wonderful surprises that turned into memories I will forever cherish.

The two international experiences I had were definitely the highlights of my first quarter. Not only was I able to learn about bonds and mutual funds in the Investment Management Program in Singapore and the art of debate and proper discourse in the 1st Asia World Schools Debating Championship in Thailand, but I also got to meet unique and talented individuals from different parts of the world.

I was also able to learn more about the different cultures and practices that really widened my perspective and understanding of the world. To top it all off, I made new friends, some of whom I still communicate with, thanks to the power of technology and social media.

It’s amazing how I was able to experience all that, and so much more. It’s simply too difficult to put in words everything I went through in the last quarter.

However, I’d be lying if I told you that I was able to experience all that without  drawbacks. Everything has a cost, and being able to experience all this had a cost, too.

AWSDC 2013 – Countless Experiences, One Description – PHANTASMAGORICAL! :D

It’s been a few days since I left Thailand yet I still can’t get over everything that happened. Honestly, everything is just starting to sink in and I still vividly remember every single thing that happened.

A blend of excitement, scorching heat, pad thai, fried crickets, free ice cream, cute stuff toys, heated debates, disappointment, late nights, bi-polar emotions, sentimental songs, unique stories and sad goodbyes made up the first international tournament experience of mine, the Asian World Schools Debating Championship.

With my “Movie Marathon” group!! Really enjoyed rolling around the pool and eating fried crickets! =))

Who would’ve thought that I could learn so much about debate, life, and the world in a span of one week. This one week flew by so quickly that as I got back to my home in Manila, I was still in disbelief that my Thailand adventure was over. 

Although I wasn’t able to visit the Thailand safari and ride the renowned elephants of Thailand, simply eating authentic Thai food already showed me the beauty of Thai culture. I was overjoyed as I got to pig out on Pad Thai, my favorite Thai food, on several occasions. The atmosphere in Bangkok was also very different. Day or night, the city seemed to always be very vibrant and busy. The numerous number of spas in the street was also quite shocking.

This experience also helped me get to know my teammates A LOT better. It truly is during these types of tournaments and experiences abroad that you really get to know people better. Even if we didn’t meet our expectations and even if we know we could’ve done a lot better, I’m sure that all of us learned myriad of things through this experience. Lessons that I’m sure will stick with us for the rest of our lives! 😉

With the Xavier Team! We definitely all learned a lot from this experience!

Greatness Doesn’t Come In An Instant

One of the most important things I realized in this tournament is that debate is just like everything in life. You have to work hard in order to get good at something. Going into the tournament, my teammates and I didn’t really work as hard as we were suppose to and it showed.

Ready, Set, Go! Thailand, Here I Come!

It’s been a few days since I last blogged and even if there are several topics that I want to blog about, I haven’t been able to find the time due to my super hectic schedule. The previous weekend of mine was eaten up by the Philippine Model Congress event I attended and during the last few days, I’ve also been really busy preparing to leave for Thailand for the 1^st ever Asian World Schools Debating Championship.

Right now, I feel really languid and ambivalent. I’m honestly not sure anymore of what I’m doing and whether or not I’m making the right choices. Everything is starting to pile up and I’ve been bombarded with a to-do list that never seems to end.

I’m blogging right now to just clear my head and try to regain the zeal and passion I had at the start of the school year. I’m honestly feeling really drained right now but I can’t give in for there is still a long journey ahead of me. Things haven’t been going my way and I’ve been feeling really sleepy and tired during class time. I’ve also been really grumpy and easily irritated the past few days.

On the bright side though, I’m really excited for today as I leave for Thailand. This is my first time to go to Thailand. Throughout the years, I ‘ve heard how wonderful Bangkok is and how cheap and good the food is. Aside from that, I’m also excited to meet the other delegates and participants of the tournament. From what I heard from my coach, the schools participating in this tournament come from 14 different countries so it will without a doubt be a very diverse and unique experience.

Going to this tournament is also a chance for me to sit back a little and get away from all the other things I’ve been worrying about. I have my ticket with me and there’s no looking back. I can’t think about all the lessons and assessments I’ll be missing because of this trip. What I should focus on is doing my best in every round of the tournament.

The least I can do right now is make the most out of this experience. Not everyone gets the chance to represent his school in an international competition like this. This is also my first time to go abroad without my parents so it’s a novel and at the same time very exciting experience for me!

I’m really thankful to God for this opportunity and I will definitely make every day in Thailand count! And off-course, you can be part of my journey for I will make sure that I blog about the experience and all the lessons that I will surely learn in this experience like no other!

As  I end this post, I’m glad that I was able to slow down a bit and reflect upon what has transpired the past few days before I leave for Thailand. Blogging truly is a beautiful way to set your mind and emotions free from everything that has happened. I feel a lot better now and reassured that I made the right choice to be part of the team going to the first ever Asian World Schools Debating Championship! My mind is now clear of distractions and I’m good and ready to go!

-DOitChoco