My 2012 Highlights

Posted on Wednesday, January 23, 2013 by Mr. Tambay

I hate to say that this is a very late post, but it's better late than very late, or worse, never. :)

We all did a wonderful welcome-to-2013 celebration during the midnight of
January 1, 2013. We all had our ways of celebrating it, some did their first
night party of 2013 until the already saw the sun, some preferred to eat the
"medya noche", and some went to sleep early. But this is one thing that is
common to us, we don't know what is ahead of us this 2013.

I had the same curiousity last year when we welcomed it with my family. I was
really thinking of what 2012 is in store for me. And when the 2012 came to
close, so as my wonderful (and favorite) year.

Wait, favorite? Of course! I consider 2012 as my favorite year as of the
moment, because all lot of blessings came into my doors and opportunities in
between. And here, I listed some of my 2012 highlights.

1.) I joined a debate competition.

During the VUDC Break Night at VUDU. (Photo by Jen Hollanes)
On February, I joined the 5th Visayas Universities Debate Competition (VUDC 5)
as a competiting adjudicator along with my debate society family. It was
frightening for me because aside from the fact that it was my first debate
competition ever, but I only got 2 straight weeks of preparation for the
tournament. Not to mention that I don't even have any single experience in
public speaking, particularly in debate. But luckily, I breaked into the Break
Rounds and was an adjudicator until Octo-finals. It was really fulfilling for
my part since I got a short-time for proper adjudication training.

2.) Attended a fun student conference.

SLC Cebu Batch Group Pic. Find me in there :) (Photo by Ryan Ramasola)
It happened on March, I was one of the participants of the Accenture Student
Leadership Conference (SLC). It was the very first Accenture SLC here in Cebu,
and like the other participants from 4 different Universities in Cebu, it was
an honor for me to be part of the pioneering batch of SLC graduates. We learned new leadership strategies from expert leaders of Accenture while having fun doing the activities at the Imperial Palace Waterpark Resort and Spa.

3.) I graduated from College.

My mentors for 5 years.
Happening on the same month with the Accenture SLC, it was one of the biggest
leaps in my life. I graduated Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering at
Cebu Institute of Technology - University. It was a very memorable part of my
life, but nothing beats what my parents felt when I graduated. You see, I am
the youngest of the family, and when my graduation day came, I saw how proud my parents were when I already wore my toga.

4.) Went to Japan for FREE! (Biggest Achievement)

Sakura sakura!
This is what I consider the very highlight of my 2012. I was one of the lucky
Filipino youths to be sent to Japan to be part of the Japan East-Asia Network
Exchange for Students and Youth Sectors (JENESYS). With the theme "Disaster
Management and Recovery Efforts", Together with my groupmates in Fukuoka Group, and with the other groups as well (Hokkaido, Kyoto and Osaka Group), we
experienced a 9-day stay in Japan to observe the recovery practices of Japan
after the Great East Japan Earthquake. In between the tour, we went to different shrines and temples, experienced living with a Japanese family, and met new Japanese friends during school and site visits. Apart from that, we also met our counterparts from Indonesia, Thailand, and other Southeast Asian countries. It was really a dream come true because I've been praying to visit Japan since I was highschool. And guess what? My Nihongo self-studying since 3rd year highschool really paid off, because I get to interact with Japanese people using their native language somehow.

5.) Became a Certified Engineer

ECE Oath-taking, the kick-off day that I became a certified Electronics Engineer!
And the 6 months of post-graduate studying paid off because it bears a fruit, a fruit of success. On October, I took the ECE Board Exam, and days after, I found out that I passed! At first, I thought that my classmates were just playing around with me, but when I checked it, I did pass! And on December, another big leap in my life happened as I took my oath of profession as a certified ECE.

With these 5 top reasons, and other reasons which I, apparently can't stack in
just 1 post, I can say that 2012 was my lucky year. Yes, there were mishaps and
misfortunes that went into my life, but I am proud to say that I did conquer them, but at the same time, learn from my mistakes. Now that 2013 has just started, I am praying for more blessings, and more opportunities that will open its doors to me. My target for this year is to start travelling and to be a style blogger. So I hope this year is my kick-off year as a sojourner and as a
fashion blogger. :P