Thoughts On Individualism

On this fine free day, I sit in the same corner of my house thinking of what else to write about. A thought passes my brain which I momentarily ignore, then surprisingly ponder on for the next few hours. This thought was created by the incessant replay of the RENT soundtrack and the tweets of a close friend of mine (whose identity will not be disclosed). From this jumbled array of ideas, I was able to extract four key concepts on the idea of individualism. Namely:

• Individualism has been the key to the success of many-- and not of one. If we were all painters, then those who cannot be at par with Michaelangelo or Botticelli would simply fade away in the background. However, since society is a mixture of painters, sculpters, writers and Mathletes, individuality has paved way for many genii. 
• Individualism, however, is also the root of uneven and unnecessary competition. 
• Not all accept the concept of individualism, which is why we have people with low self-esteem and people who fancy themselves the embodiedment of God.
• Individualism is not the opposite of unity. Rather, it is in individualism that authentic unity happens. 

Thoughts from Places (from the corner of the living room)

The worst things in life come coupled with the best. For example, in relation to what's happening to the Philippines, if the President decides to abolish the pork barrel then corruption and poverty would decrease drastically. This, of course, is to be followed by the uproar of many senators including the most wonderful, generous and altruisic Janet Napoles.

Before I delve deeper into the messy topic of Philippine politics (hopefully another blogpost), I'd like to elaborate further on the topic of "the best of times, the worst of times"-- senior year version. 

By far, this year is the one that demanded the most from me. The stress I experienced in the first quarter of the school year is far from the short bouts of stress I experienced throughout my entire third year. I have found myself swimming in an ocean of requirements mixed together with student responsibilities, student leader responsibilities and the occassional writer-for-the-Theresian-magazine responsibilities. This along with the constant pressure of the CETs has definitely driven me to the edge, making my Twitter username an almost-truth in the eyes of many. 

Despite all of this, however, I still do feel excited whenever I wake up in the morning. From the start of senior year, I was already enthusiastic about the prospect of meeting new friends and learning new lessons. STC and IV2 did not disappoint me. My grades in all the subjects albeit Economics (huhu, why?) reflect the amount of work I put into them. My love for Math and Science, once burned out by several hell subjects in my third year, has been rekindled once more by two very lovely teachers; and though I'm still struggling with the sudden shift from History to Economics, I thoroughly enjoy my teacher's insights on the Philippine Economy and Politics.

Although, all academics aside, senior year is the best year for me because of the people I spend it with. Besides the friends who have been with me since first year, I have grown attached to several of my classmates. The complicated family has never failed to make my day (and break my phone haha). Random "i love yous" from them, and the even more random conversations over WeChat definitely give me this warm, bubbly feeling inside. This fondness is bittersweet for me because in a few months we will soon be parting ways. The idea of being separated from them scares me. Nevertheless, I'll be sure to visit all my complicated family members during college. Ohana means family, and family means nobody is lefi behind or forgotten. 

And they're not the only friends I was able to reconnect with this year. With fourth year came a new Ica-- who tries to strives for excellence in the field of conversation. I'm not exactly a socialite, but I am now capable of having a decent (yet sabaw) conversation with my friends. I was able to make several friends outside of my inner circle of friends, who accept me regardless of the numerous corny jokes I give them (HAHA hi Raf). 

In conclusion, as I sit here on my favorite green swivel chair, I think that I have finally emerged from the sea of "social martyrdom". I still have a long way to go, compared to my blooming classmates, but the first few steps have been easy enough. What's a couple hundred more? 

Another One

As I'm sitting here, looking at the blinking cursor I can't help but feel guilt gnaw the inside of my stomach.

I guess what bugs me about all of this is the fact that I can't seem to make a meaningful blogpost. The ones which I'm proud of are the ones which would disinterest most of my "readers". Now, before I let the long-windedness get to me, I'd like to mention this:

I'm not shutting down tuesdayswithIca. I'm merely informing everyone that I'm going to be changing the blogging style here (again). I'm determined to make this blog work.