WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF I DIDN'T CHANGE SCHOOLS?

I'm currently enrolled in the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. I was situated in their Laboratory High School for four years (7th grade to 10th grade) and now I am placed in their Senior High School Department where I will be graduating 2 years from now.



I've been planning to do this blog post for a while now especially now that I have gotten in touch with some of my elementary classmates, but I didn't know how to write it without explaining why I transferred school, so today I decided to write about it wondering what my life would have been.

First of all, I will not learn how to create PowerPoint presentations, edit videos, or do some tech-y stuffs. When I first moved to PUPLHS, one of the first thing I quickly learned was how to edit videos and how to create awesome presentations. I learned pretty fast and I soon made a name for someone who is a nerd with things technical. That wouldn't be the case if I didn't transfer school. My old elementary school's high school department is behind in modern times and doesn't use projectors or make films as their final exam or projects, and seeing how my brother is a little far behind in all these stuff, I can safely assume that I wouldn't be technological smart like I am today.

Second, I wouldn't have a blog. I didn't really read fiction or anything of the sort in my old elementary school, but I did enjoy reading classical stories (i.e. Tom Sawyer, Oliver Twist, Huckleberry Finn). Now, when I started reading books it was because of my 7th grade classmate (Marian) who introduced me to them. She told me how disgustingly obnoxious the Percy Jackson films are and that I should read the books. I soon learned that it was true and came to loathe the movies as well. As my obsession with books began to grow I started writing. I was inspired to fix my grammatical errors, become more fluent in English, and all that stuff. I had some passion for writing in my elementary days but I have never indulge into it thinking it was a waste of time.

Third, I wouldn't be a fast typer or learn Bookkeeping. In 8th grade one of the subjects I was really good at was Keyboarding. Basically, Keyboarding is a subject where you have to type in typewriters while your hand is covered by a piece of paper attached in the keyboard. Not to brag but I was one of the best students there. I was really fascinated by how I type and as my passion for typing began to grow I quickly learned how to type faster, resulting in to me typing 90 words per minute. 

My high school wants students to learn subjects that are a bit odd, and one of them is Bookkeeping. Because of my high school's curriculum I got to learn Bookkeeping and I got quite good at it, but Bookkeeping is not the only thing I would have missed it if it wasn't for me transferring schools, I would also not learn about Shorthand writing, and even though I don't love Stenography I'm pretty thankful I have at least somewhat an idea of the subject.

Fourth, I wouldn't be a Koreaboo. I can't imagine an alternative reality where I wouldn't be listening to K-Pop, adoring EXID, watching K-Drama or trying Korean beauty regimens. My first dose of K-Pop was when I was 4th grade/5th grade when I heard Wonder Girl's 'Nobody' but I wasn't obsessed with it. I then heard other hits like 'Hot Issue' by 4 Minute, 'Gee' by Girls' Generation, 'Sorry Sorry' by Super Junior, and 'Fire' by 2ne1, but I wasn't that obsessed with it. I listened to them constantly and dance to them but it wasn't until I met one of my closest friends (Sofia) in 8th grade that I became this typical fanboy that I am today.  

Fifth, we would be in a bind, financially. One of the things my parents constantly mention when I achieve an achievement in my high school alma mater was that I gave them a leeway to a better financial situation. My old school costs about 60,000 php ($1189.20) per year and that includes miscellaneous, uniforms, tuition fees, and daily allowances. If I didn't leave my old school it would have cost my parents 480,000 php ($9513.60) to pay for me and my brother's education. That's a lot! If I didn't transfer, we wouldn't have been able to buy a car, 2 houses, travel abroad, or enroll my mom in graduate school.

Last, I wouldn't be independent and have awesome experiences and friends. My high school alma mater gave me experiences I would boast my entire life, despite having crippling depression and anxiety for the half of it. That school taught me how to be independent a lot! I got an internship in one of their offices at 16 years old, I operated our classroom's food stand in 8th grade, I got to go to travel and have fun with my friends without my parent's authorization, and I got to perform a bunch of times with only my friends' wit, money, and hard work! That is something I wouldn't have been able to gain when I didn't have the guts to transfer!



Now, I'm not saying that my elementary school wasn't beneficial, but in some ways me being put under probation and "cyber bullying" that obnoxious girl has its own silver lining. I'll be meeting my Grade 10 classmates' on December 16 and thinking about all the hardships, winning streaks (~ehem~ ~ehem~), and laughter I've been through with them I can't help but feel this fuzzy feelings inside of me and have nostalgia.




(What if I'm 90 pounds lighter if I didn't transfer schools? Goddamn it!)

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