The last time that my parents and my family were invited in an occasion to witness me

being awarded or recognized for my achievement was way back in high school, during my
graudation. And that was back in 2008….. almost 12 years ago. .. And in retrospect, it has been
12 long years of drought, of never been able to make them proud, 12 years of disappointment
pretty much. And the greatest disappointment I had given them is when I failed my bar exams
two years ago. the thing is it really broke my heart not because it was too much of a personal
disappointment, it was the feeling of having failed my family who since day one had given me
the support that I needed.
Just to share what happened 2 years ago, my close friend, Jerry (now Atty. Villegas), and
I were at the cemetery while waiting for the results of the 2019 bar exams. Thou we already had
little hopes that we will make it, it was still painful to receive the bad news. Mine was when my
mom called me and told me “anak hindi ka pumasa”. I replied “si jerry ma, pumasa ba?” And
then she said, kayong dalawa ni jerry lang ang hindi pumasa anak”. The moment i heard it, it was
the saddest moment of my life. I also felt bad for my friend as I was the bearer of bad news.
(pero deep inside, sabi ko, buti na lang may kasama akong bumagsak). Jokeee. But at that time, i
did not cry yet. meanwhile my friend was already crying like a little kid as he called his mom.
Knowing that I was not on the list of bar passers felt bad, but what made it worse was when my
mom uttered these words before hanging up the phone. “anak uwi ka na, dito ka muna kay
mama”. I know she was also hurting at that moment, and to hear those comforting words from
someone who was also at that emotional state, It was so heart-breaking. When I finally came
home, I just went straight to her, we hugged, i told her just one word, “sorry” and i started
crying. I cried for about 5 min….. That’s it, it took me just 5 min to grieve. AND right after the
very last teardrop, I began collecting my law Books, I exhaled deeply and decided to enter the
battle field again.
Fastforwarding everything, almost one year therefrom, those tears of sorrow turned to
tears of rejoice when my mom and I celebrated as we saw my name on the list as the 1234th bar
passer. Literally, 1234th.
So how and why did I pass?.... The reason was simple, it was all God’s plan. It was His
plan to finally reward my family for the love, trust, sacrifice and support they had given me in
achieving this goal. It was not just my victory, but more importantly, it represents the collective
success of all who have been part of my journey, my family…. my school (the MARIANO
MARCOS STATE UNIVERSITY)… my mentors and professors who gave me passing remarks,
and even those who failed me( trust me when I say, you will remember them the most during bar
exams) , and finally, my friends. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
As a parting piece of advice….. Sometimes, the best motivation to succeed is to fail.
Keep trying, and don’t be ashamed to fail your way to success. Thank you and good-evening.