I humbly request everyone in this hall to be in silence as I begin my speech with a simple personal prayer.
To Thee I Pray
The day I live,
The air I breathe,
Everything unto me
You give;
This adoration and praise,
You deserve;
Thanks for the food I eat,
It nourishes my body;
For Thy spirit so holy,
Through Thy words
My soul is nourished;
Forgive my sins.
To Thee I bend my knees;
For I am imperfect;
In Thy saving grace,
I thirst;
To Thee I humbly ask wisdom,
Mold me to be one
The one You designed to be,
To worship and praise
Obedient unto Thee;
Guide my path
With Thy guiding love;
Lead me to a path so right,
With Thy power
Shines my day so bright;
These heart’s desires
To Thee I entrust;
With Thy mighty grace
I believe
You’ll give everything I need;
All these things I ask,
In Thy Holy Name,
Through Jesus Christ
Who redeems and saves
To Thee I pray,
Amen.
Honored guest; missionary President of this college Dr. Elpidio R. Bautista; dynamic and versatile Vice President for Academic Affairs, Prof. Rosalito A. Quirino; active Vice President for Administration and Finance, Ms. Rhoda B. Gadrinab; Directors of the Different Units, Deans of the different Institutes, Members of the Faculty and Staff, Fellow Graduates; adored and beloved parents and guardians, friends, visitors, ladies and gentlemen, maayad na anlaw, buenas diaz,
zǎo shang
hǎo maayong adlaw, magandang araw, good day to all.
It seems it was just yesterday when I took the College Admission Test; I was interviewed, and then passed. It seems it was just yesterday when I applied for a scholarship grant, I qualified and accepted. It looks It was just yesterday when I cried tears in solitude and pain yet at times tears of joy. It seems it was just yesterday when I cried for my compensation or refund being a grantee of two scholarships, where which for quite a long time wala pa jud nako nakuha!
It appears it was just yesterday but it’s over. Today is here, a day that accounts all the meaningful and memorable experiences and bittersweet yet inspiring and fruitful endeavors of yesterday.
Today is here, a day that highlights another milestone in our lives, which recognizes our achievements made through hard work, firmness, determination and sacrifices.
The day has come, a day where both joyful and cheerless moments are reckoned – moments and experiences that, I believe, are very important and play significant role of my becoming a versatile and competent graduate.
Looking closely to the significance of this very moment’s affair, it tells us that today, is not just a day where we rejoice for the triumph that we have but most importantly a day of thanksgiving, a time of giving tribute to the people behind this success – our parents and guardians.
Giving tribute, honor and gratitude to our parents…
At first I was hesitant about the speech though inside of me I really wanted to. I was hesitant because I find it hard to express tribute and homage to our dear parents in behalf of the graduates. I could not find appropriate words in expressing gratitude to them because in the first place no such thing can compare the value and significance of our parents.
I could still vividly recall the moment my parents weren’t able to sleep thinking of how they could find money for my projects and other school requirements. There I felt that the pain brought by the trials and struggles that I had encountered as a student is not enough to compare knowing that my parents too feel not just the same feeling but twice and even thrice the pain I felt.
I love my parents so much that it cause me a lot every time I see them reflecting and seemed that their minds were wandering from nowhere, thinking of how they could sustain the six of us. My parents are farmers, farmers who just till a parcel of land, which is not ours, no fixed income, and the harvests are just enough for a minimum consumption. However, despite from that I feel proud of their being optimistic. My parents always look at the positive side of life – they think positively. I can say so because it is a fact that some parents never support their children in their study because according to them, if their children finish their studies they won’t look back and help their parents in return. But my parents are not like them. They are very positive. That’s why I am very proud that I have parents like them.
My father and mother are working in the field everyday. Evidently, I see it and feel it every time I hold their callous hands and palms. (sa bisaya Makita ug akong mabati pinaagi sa mga kubal sa ilang mga kamot ug palad). Because of this, I strive hard in my studies and grab every opportunity that comes believing that someday I could uplift my family from the dark view of life and poverty. Yes, financially, my parents lack but with love, they are abundant. They are caring and loving, not only to me but also for the rest of my younger brothers and sisters.
There are so many things that we must be thankful to our parents. They provide support to their children. Speaking of support, I could not forget those moments when I joined different contests, especially competition conducted outside the school. My parents are always worried about my financial needs. I am always hesitant to ask money from them because I consider our financial status. But still I can say they are very supportive. Verily, when I was interviewed during the 2008 Search for National Ayala Young Leaders Congress Delegates, the panel of interviewers asked me: Considering your financial status, how were you able to come here, I mean, how can you prove you parents are supportive? I answered them with a smile, and I said: They could not provide me much financially but they have been very supportive to me every time. To prove it, I have brought with me the parents’ permission form. Their signatures show that they really support me in whatever endeavors I am going to undertake. The interviewer fall a tear in her eyes; while on the other hand, I have been struggling for air to grasp so not to cry in front of them.
It is still fresh in my mind when my parents were there during my Final Demonstration Teaching cooking delicious chicken adobo and halang-halang for the observers.
Fellow graduates, our parents are our instant heroes. They are our instant doctors when we are sick. Try to think deeply there in your seats recalling those moments your mother could not sleep attending you as you suffer from sickness, while your father wakes up early dawn if not in the middle of the night looking for medicines and the like. Try to reflect and imagine what would have happened if your parents were not there at your side. For me I could still recollect one instance when I almost die because of irregular bowel movement caused by the sudden cholera outbreak in the coastal municipalities of the province, namely Villanueva and Tagoloan. I suffered it during my practice teaching at Vicente N. Chavez Memorial Central School in Villanueva. I suffered it for 2 weeks but still I am reporting to school until I couldn’t stand anymore and my stomach was so painful. I was worried. I borrowed Mama Cecil’s phone (my landlady there in Villanueva) and texted my sister about my situation. As they received the message, my parents rushed their way from a far barrio of Plaridel to Villanueva, bringing with them a bundle of natural herbs. With that I was not taken to the hospital. That was not only the moment they have become my precious physicians because since I was young, they have always there taking care of me.
To our dear parents who are here today, thank you for being our rich banker. They always find ways to look for money for us to pay for our financial obligations here in school. Our parents have been extending their support to send us to school to have acquired education. However, some students didn’t see and find value or importance to this. They go to school drank, some are smoking, some cut classes, and doing misbehaviors, wasting time, money and other resources with nonsense things ignoring the fact that their parents are tirelessly working under the sweltering sun rays and at times cold and freezing air and rain from the winter winds. I just can’t imagine how irresponsible these sons and daughters are.
If many parents have experienced such problem, well, my parents are lucky enough because I am proud to say I never, ever, and even a single time I fail their dreams. In fact, every single moment when I am alone, I couldn’t but think of my parents how are they doing, whether they have taken a perfect meal – a dish of cooked corn grits, salted fish, vinegar, dried fish and camote tops – and that comprise the perfect meal.
Dear parents, this program is especially organized for you. You deserve all admiration and regard for without you we are not here. Thus, I would like to invite my fellow students and graduates to grab this precious moment of thanking our parents, holding their hands saying I love you to them even just for this time. Let us grab this chance while our parents can still hear us. If you have not said I love you to your father and mother, do it now. There might be no other day. Hug them. And most of all letting them feel that we are proud of them. We are proud they are our parents.
To my parents I want you to know I am very lucky and gifted having you as my parents. To my father and mother I want to dedicate this few lines of my own song composition. This is entitled: Thanks for Loving Me this Way
I found my life
Since you came inside my heart
All things have changed
Putting all pieces into part
Ref. No one could replace
The beauty of your name
The wonders of your love
Always keep me safe and warm.
Cho. In you, I found my life
In my journey you’re my guide
Heavy loads you take away
Giving me some rest to stay.
Tears are wiped to ease the pain
In your side I shall remain
Words are not enough to say
Thanks for loving me this way.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am very proud to introduce to you my beloved father Mr. Jemson Rivera Salatan Sr. and my dear mother, Mrs. Remeria Ochigue Salatan. My father only finished high school, while my mother an elementary graduate. They are my parents. My parents are farmers; I love my parents. They send me to school to finish a degree. Pa, Ma, you may not have finished your education but on my capacity as your son, on this very day of my graduation, I declare you too have graduated.
I want you to know that you are the significant persons behind every success that I have. You are my angels who brought me here, who brought me this far.
With that, I am always thankful to God. Fellow students we must be thankful to God that despite our imperfections He has given us parents who would care, love and understand us. Together let us shout: “I love my parents and I’m proud of them!”
To God be the Glory!
