31/07/2026
MY PASSION SAVED ME FROM POVERTY
My heart still aches every time I read stories of survival. Because I came from that quest.
My father let my youngest sister took up Political Science in the hope of making her a lawyer. When my sister shifted to Psychology, she made a declaration that she will never go to law school. And so, I took the opportunity and said, "Pa, ako na lang. Ako na lang Pa bi."
That was my first dibs.
When I indeed attempted to enroll in law school, I had to pay the full tuition fee because of my delayed honorable dismissal from UC-Banilad. My money was not enough. "Next semester na lang ko Pa." I told my father.
"No." He answered. The next thing I heard, he borrowed from my neighbors. While waiting, I told God, "God, if makahuwam si Papa, will gyud siguro nimo nga mag-law school ko." When he came back with P5k in his hand, I swore I could jump in ecstacy.
That was my second dibs.
But dibs, surely, were not enough. I was tested financially and academically. There was no doubt about my determination. It was money matters and grade matters that consumed the hell out of me.
There were hungry and depressed times. There were times when I all I could do was cry. There were times when I had to borrow from friends. There were times when I felt so lonely studying alone.
It was passion that caused me to fight them all. There was nothing else I would do but to learn the law.
Now, I am savoring the fruit of my perseverance.
No, do not call me lucky. It was not luck that propelled me. It was blood, sweat and tears. The success was hard-earned. It was not achieved overnight.
I am so sentimental of those hardships that I want to cry every time I see my name in court envelopes. Congrats, Jeryl Grace. You did really make it. Let that sink in now. 😊
Date Written: November 16, 2022
