Every time I make an article, I can’t help but to think about how writing relates to the process of learning. In our life, each of us was once a clean sheet of paper, waiting for a moment to be filled by words. Time will come that we will be able to grow ourselves as a precious book, that one day everyone will uncover.
This feeds my eagerness to do my best, not only in writing, but also in school. I treat every day as an opportunity to enhance the kind of book that I am, because even though I know I have a story to tell, I also knew that it’s still not enough. The world is so vast and as long as I want to fill myself with knowledge, there will not be anything wrong in taking chances.
I have learned that somebody is probably having the biggest chance of his life.
It’s a usual routine for me to browse the news feed of my Facebook account. It’s a real fun seeing a lot of people sharing their thoughts and quotable “hugots” online. But a certain post seemed to catch me in the eye. It was about a son of a farmer who got a scholarship in Harvard. His name was Romnick Blanco, a young book from Bulacan.
Curiosity led me to a page made by him with a title of “I hear my country calling”. This is where he posts updates and dedications for the people who had helped him achieve his education now. One of his posts is an open letter about his journey as a kid, and on how dreaming became his strength and hope.
Reading through his words was like taking a scenic view of his experiences in life. On how he walked for two hours and crossed bridgeless rivers, just to get to school and on how he saw his family and his community, living in hopelessness and despair. On how he had seen education as the way in reaching his dreams and his aim of touching other people’s lives, was like a real-life magic and was indeed, inspiring.
“It takes a village to raise a child,” was one of his quotes in the post. There he thanked all the people and organizations, namely the Green Earth Foundation and the International School Manila, who were behind his current state in education. Now, he was being supported by even more people, who believed in what he also did before, that he can do anything as long as he had faith and goal.
His story will forever be a reminder to me that in our books, the author is also us, and Romnick had filled himself with the right words and letters. I think it is also the time, not just me but for also the people who will be touched by these words, to believe that nothing is impossible with perseverance and indomitable spirit.