Words of Gratitude 2022

2 years ago in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic made our lives miserable. Since then, I never
thought that this day would come. Never did I expect that this event would even be possible but
God is truly good because here we are, recognizing our struggles and celebrating our victories
throughout the school year.

To the Public Schools District Supervisor, Mr. Clarence S. Pillerin, to Cristy C. Epeas represented
by ___________________ , to our School Principal, Mr. Eugene C. Sayson. To our guest speaker,
Mr. Aljun A. Rollan., ,To our Hon. Ian Mar Escobarte,to the PTA President, Mr. Temoteo Pupa Jr.,
to the respected teachers, hardworking staff, proud parents and to my fellow graduates, a
pleasant morning to us. I am very grateful and honor to speak before you all at this once in a life
time opportunity.

Congratulations! We’ve made it. 

All our hard work has finally paid off. We’ve made it with God’s grace. After 6 years of patience
and perseverance, finally, we can now harvest the fruit of our labor. I believe that this is not the
end but just the beginning of real life that is ahead of us.

Challenges are part of our everyday life. Whether big or small, few or many, it is good that we
reflect on the essence of experiencing these challenges. A prominent person once said, and I re-
quote, “A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.”

We have been confronted with novel challenges, the demands and expectations in the overhaul
of our educational system. However, we have also been equipped with knowledge and skills,
hence honed, nurtured, and developed so to deal with more challenges and struggles in our lives
hereafter. To my fellow graduates, or should I say future architects, engineers, scientists,
doctors, accountants, managers, assistants, teachers, or whatever profession or job soon
pursued, challenges can be but akin to heat in different temperature levels, heat that helps us
forge our weapons against harsh realities of life.

This year wasn’t a good start for all of us due to the adjustments because of the COVID-19
pandemic outbreak. It has changed and significantly impacted several aspects of our everyday
lives, including going to school, making this school year difficult and full of problems. As a result,
schools have been compelled to switch to online education in place of regular classes to meet
safety protocols. This pandemic gives us a challenging life. It tormented the dreams of most
students. The transition from the traditional way of schooling to the new modality of learning
caused major changes. This global outbreak tested our resilience and challenged our insurance.
We were faced with a lots of difficulties and struggles. I remember one time, I cried because I
didn't really understand the lesson in my module. Bisag unsaon pa nako ug puga akong utok,
basin ikapila pako nag-research sa google, I still did not understand the lesson. Also during online
class, mag-putol2x ang tingog sa among teacher because of our low speed internet connection.
There are many nights that I stayed up late just to meet the deadline. Naa pay laptop nga
mupalong ra ug kalit. Whenever I record a video for our performance task, naa juy musingit nga
tingog sa manok, bura-bura nga motor, or tingog sa silingan nga nag-away so dugay kaayo
mahuman ug vinideo and I know most of us graduates also faced this kind of struggles in 2 years
of learning inside our home. Adapting to the new normal of learning was not simple and easy.
Online classes and modules was far from what we are used to and from what we had expected.

To be honest, this is not what I expected in my first year in senior high. I was very excited at first
and always looking forward to it since I was still in 10th grade. I’ve always imagine it would be
something more interactive and less stressful but I can say it was a meaningful experience that I
will value for the rest of my life. I realized after 2 years of learning through modular, this
situation taught me to be more patient and responsible despite of all the challenges and hinges.
It helps me to embrace change with positivity in these hard times and look on the better side of
the situation. We should be thankful that the Department of Education found ways for us to
learn in the middle of this crisis. To my co-graduates, I am so proud that even we’re staying in a
four corners in our home facing our modules, we still made complete and finish our studies.
Adapting in a new way of learning is not easy and very challenging but despite all of that, we
survived.

All of us know that being able to survive with this new educational system would not have been
possible without the help and assistance of our loved ones and those people around us. Hence
on behalf of my fellow graduates, I would like to express my deepest gratitude and appreciation
to the people who are truly behind of our success.

To our hard-working teachers who remained very dedicated despite the challenges of online
teaching. Our supportive advisors, Ms. Jeryn Mara Ritz Heramiz and Sir Daniel Gomez, our
subject teachers and to all great teachers that are here today, you have done your job more
than words can express. Thank you for all the wisdom you shared and for setting a great example
to us. We truly appreciate your patience and efforts in imparting your knowledge towards us.
When this pandemic began, you were given a little notice to shift very quickly to distance
learning. We know and understand that teachers are struggling like the rest of us. You have to
balance home and work and the rest of the different aspects of your life. We know and
understand that we are not perfect students and that we have caused you frustrations and anger
on several occasions and we would like to apologize for that. Despite your struggles, you open
our eyes to who we could be and what we could accomplish in many ways that we could never
imagine. Today we show you our sincerest gratitude for molding our characters and for showing
us that there is still much to learn. Palakpakan po natin ang ating mga dakilang guro.

To our beloved parents and families, we are forever grateful for your endless support, sacrifices
and unconditional love. You are the true and strong foundations of who and what we are now.
You deserve to share every honor that we receive today. Even though we are stubborn most of
the time, you give us your complete support, trust and love unconditionally. We sincerely
apologize for all of our mistakes and commitments that we have failed to keep. Despite our
obstinacy, we hope that we have made you proud in some ways. There are no enough words to
express how thankful we are to all of you. I want to give an immense thank you to my father for
doing everything to provide the best he could just to give us a good and comfortable life. Pa,
even though you are not here today to witnessed your daughter walk on stage wearing toga and
finally graduated, I can still feel your love here today from work. Thank you to my mother for her
unconditional love and set endless support for me all throughout my journey. This achievement
and milestone serves as my precious gift to the both of you. Shout out to my lola and lolo who
are already in heaven, to my sister and brother, to my aunties, uncles and cousins, who have
witnessed my hard work since day one, thank you for supporting me throughout this journey. To
all my relatives that even we are not always together, I know that they are always there for me.
From the bottom of my heart thank you.

In addition, I would also like to acknowledge our seniors from batch 2020 and 2021 who
unfortunately did not experience this day. We share this day with you. We carry your names, joy,
dreams, and memories in your 6 years in high school. In behalf of my co-graduates, we thank you
for being great senior that we could look up to, for teaching us to never be discouraged in times
of adversity.

Lastly, to my classmates and junior high school friends from STEM, TVL, and GAS, whom I shared
laughter and runs with, Aze, Dhackleesa, Jahoney, Jaylyn, Janna, Mary Claire, Kristen, Micko, and
everyone else, I couldn't have survived the school year without your help. From the bottom of
my heart, thank you. As we look back into our roller coaster ride journey , all of us had
experienced ups and downs. Remember those times when we left our hearts out when we had
unexpected hangouts after class, when we enjoyed every school programs and when we first had
our online classes together, we struggled with unstable connection, meeting our deadlines and
dealing with pressure and lack of motivation but we also experienced being proud of our work
accomplishing something successfully and gaining memorable experiences with our classmates
and friends. I'm glad that I spent my high school years with you.

I would also like to express my gratitude to our beloved alma mater, Matti National High School
for the opportunities you have given us. To develop our knowledge and abilities. I am thankful
for the memorable 6 years I had spent in this school. Our school never failed to achieve its
mission to provide education that develops individuals who are self-reliant competent and with
a deep sense of professionalism accordant to Filipino virtues and ideals. Thank you for the
number of years this school has molded us for it contributed a lot to our growth not merely as
students but as young citizens as well.

Above all, I am most thankful to our Dear God for hearing my prayers for bestowing wisdom
upon me for giving me strength whenever i doubt myself and feel tired. You are the greatest
foundation of all of our inspiration courage and hard work that has led us to where we are right
now. I am also very grateful to You made this event possible. I praise and love you always in all
ways. All the glory is offered back in your name.

My fellow graduates, we are about to part ways to find the right track that lies ahead of us along
the way. We may meet a lot of struggles and uncertainties but our burning desire to reach our
goals will keep us from giving up. Just like what our graduation song says, “Someday they’ll see,
I’ll be exactly where I meant to be.” I want to encourage you to believe in yourself and to strive
for the best until you reach you dreams. Failures and trials should not be the reason for us to say
no and never try to pursue our dreams rather let us make them an inspiration for us to grow and
do better. Don’t let anyone tell you different. You got to do what you’re meant to do. Puhon,
people will see us where we exactly meant to be, a successful person.

Papunta pa lang tayo sa exciting part, hashtag to more sleepless nights in college but today is our
day so congratulations to all of us. Let’s enjoy and celebrate. Thank you and once again, good
morning. God bless us all.