I am very excited to be here, but also very nervous because this is the first time I’ve

spoken onstage as an Alumna of Montessori. But I’m also very nervous because I might

speak in vernacular and you might charge me Piso for every vernacular word I say.

Good morning Tangub Montessori Center. I still see some very familiar faces from my

childhood. I can see that kuya noel, our photographer is still here. Im sure you all know

teacher Cindy. And teacher Elsie was also here earlier. And of course our school

principal Teacher Meri, who let me tell you has not aged a day since I was last here,

thank you very much for the invitation. And of course I would not be here, in fact, we

would all not be here today without the ever so supportive teacher Ladell. And to all the

new faces, that will bring Tangub and Ozamiz Montessori Centeuer forward, good

morning and thank you for having me here.

I remember around 10 years ago, I was also at this stage behind this exact podium,

delivering a speech at my graduation. I remember it was a lot bigger than it is now.

I felt like i was taken back in time when Eva Angela was sharing their class history.

From cooking eggs in a raft in the middle of the ocean on camping, to practices for all

your school performances, to hiding behind a shelf when you need to be by yourself or

need to change from your sweaty PE uniform. I think that this is why montessori kids

always have special bond. Whether you graduate in 2019, 2009 or 1999, we all went

through the same experiences and for me this is why we automatically have this bond.

We have an instant connection as Montessori graduates. I never thought that 10 years

later I would be back, but this time around as a guest speaker for the future of

Montessori.
Parents, you have enrolled your kids in one of the best schools in Misamis Occidental, so

you have already done half the work.

Graduates, as you move forward to high school, and in the future college and your

careers, or whichever path you may choose to take, always remember to be WERPA.

I want you to be W as in Woke. Keep an open mind.

Let me tell you a story. When I was your age, I was a very fat kid, and I tore my ankle

when I attempted to do a cartwheel for PE. Now I’m still fat. But I’m a fat UAAP Judo

player and a National Powerlifting Team medalist. 12-year-old me couldn’t even imagine

that college me would be these things. And I had only achieved these because I stayed

WOKE. I saw opportunities and took them.

A lot of the opportunities that you are going to get will not be what you expect. So stay

woke for whatever comes your way. For all the new people you’re going to meet, for the

opportunities that come knocking on your door, for all the new experiences you are

going to have, stay WOKE.

But staying woke will only get you so far, which brings me to my next point.

I want you to be E, be eager. Once you discover your new talents or when you find new

opportunities, I want you to be eager to practice. Be eager to learn everything you can

about it. Be eager to hone yourself to keep doing better.

When the shy Montessori kid in me discovered I could talk well, heck I was so eager I

went all out. In high school, I signed up for DSPC radio broadcasting, I finished Speech
Communication in college, I hosted a lot of events, commented on tournaments, I’m

speaking to you all right now.

So when you find your thing, you have to be E! E as in EAGER

I want you to be R, RESPONSIBLE.

Just like what Spiderman’s Tito said, with great power comes great responsibility After

this, you will have new challenges, I want you to be RESPONSIBLE of your actions, be

RESPONSIBLE to the new people you meet who will trust you, be RESPONSIBLE of

managing your time, because your schedule is going to be a whole lot different than

what it looks like now. If it hasn’t changed, well, stay woke, because you’re not doing it

right. Be RESPONSIBLE for yourself.

I also want you to be P, PATIENT. Even if you stayed woke, are eager to work and are

responsible, you need to be PATIENT since success will take a while. Before I got into

the national team and got my first international medal, I competed so many times

locally and trained almost every day for 2 years. Now I see you’re looking at me, judging,

and just to put it out there, I also ate a lot during that time. Success takes a while, so I

want you to be PATIENT.

And for the last one, I want you to be A - ACCOMPLISHED. After you’ve stayed woke for

all the opportunities, after you’ve put in your hard work, and after you’ve come so far.

You’ve got nothing left to do but enjoy. Savor the moment, Feel ACCOMPLISHED. You

have done it.

So after you leave this venue, I want you to always remember to be WERPA. Stay

WOKE, be EAGER, be RESPONSIBLE, be PATIENT and you can ACCOMPLISH

anything.

Now, I want to hear you say it. I want you to say “I’m gonna be WERPA!”

Congratulations graduates, give yourself a hand. Thank you, everyone, and good

morning.