When I told my cousin I wanted to study in UA&P, she immediately discouraged me. She told me that a friend of hers who she claimed was intelligent once studied in UA&P but got dismissed from the school for failing to reach the GWA. My cousin has done an excellent job in making me feel that her friend was far better than me by tactfully saying, “mas matalino yon sa ‘yo!” Anyway, I pushed for what I wanted, so I enrolled in UA&P despite my parents’ hesitations and my personal fears and insecurities.

My first semester in UA&P was nothing I expected. I bought an entire semester’s reading for a single subject (an APS subject) worth 550 pesos. I knew then at that moment, that I was about to take a plunge into an unknown abyss. Back in high school, I only read portions of EL Fili, Noli, Ibong Adarna and the likes. It was only here in this school that I first finished reading a required book which was This Earth of Mankind. Honestly, if I add up everything I have read from preschool to high school, it still wouldn’t match the amount of books, articles and other research materials I have read in UA&P for four years. So many things to read, so many papers to submit and so many exams to study for- with this, experiencing sleepless nights were inevitable.

These are just some of the things I went through but let me share my 5 worst experiences in UA&P.

5. The first time I cried for a subject.
- This wasn’t really a terrible story, but it was just so memorable. Anyway, the gist is this: I stayed up the whole night doing my part of the presentation for an APS subject. I slept for an hour. Then, little did I know that 2 of my group mates are going to cut class and the other one didn’t do her part. As a result, I must report everything by myself but I failed to do so because I didn’t know the parts and I’m so emotionally unstable then because I didn’t see that situation coming. I cried because I felt that if I hadn’t slept for an hour, I would have done something about the report.

4. GRR! Commute again!
- I commute everyday via public transportation. Most of the time I find it difficult because you never know when an FX with a plackard showing “Tikling Antipolo” or “Junction” is going to show up. It can be for just 5 minutes but it can also take 2 hours before one finally arrives. I normally rant about commuting for three reasons. One is when I need to go home to cram for a school requirement. Second, I simply hate waiting. Third, I have scoliosis and standing up for too long and carrying even just a shoulder bag and even worse when I’m carrying too much stuff, causes me to feel my spinal column stiffen and ache terribly (its like I’m being pierced by one hundred needles). Due to the unpredictable whether, there were many occasions when I bathe in the rain. Most of the time, I choose to just get wet and rush home rather than waiting for it to stop because time is of the essence. One of the worst experiences I had with commuting is when my meeting finished at one or two am and I can’t hitch with my classmates. So, I had to commute but the street was just empty. Hot tears fell from my eyes. I just can’t help but picture myself and the situation I’m in as those Maalaala Mo Kaya scenes. (pretty sentimental, huh? hehe)

3. Not having a laptop
- this is not too big of a problem because it’s not an end all and be all thing. But allow me to say this: my life would’ve been MUCH easier if I had one.

2. Losing a video clip
- We were doing a video presentation for Communication theory and I’m relying on this requirement to pass the subject. We hadn’t slept for days. Minutes before class time, we were all cramming and suddenly the bulk of the presentation got deleted or something. I can’t help but cry. It was such a worse feeling with all the stress, pressure and physical fatigue. And I remember, at that time, crying was physically painful, the tears caused a stingy sensation to my eyes probably because my eyes hadn’t rested for a long time.

1. Not waking up for Dr. K’s presentation
-Dr. K is a legend. I got home really late probably 4 or 5 am to work on our first presentation in Dr. K’s class. I set the alarm on my phone at 630 but failed to inform my mom to wake me up. Anyway, my tired body was probably just too comfortable sleeping on my bed that I didn’t hear nor felt my phone vibrate. When I woke up I saw the clock, it was 10 minutes to 9 and my class begins at 9. I was hysterical! I remember just seating on the floor and crying, I just can’t believe the mess that I was in. This experience was memorable but I never want this to happen again ever!

In know you guys have your worst moments in UA&P. What I cited were just some of the many not so fortunate experiences I had. But if you look at them from a different perspective, all those things I’m ranting about are not really that bad. I may complain about them at the exact moment those things were taking place, but now, as I look back, they were things that made my stay in UA&P precious, rewarding and unforgettable.