Some people are terrified of feeling stupid

Para sa akin naman,

Okay lang magmukhang tanga. 

It’s okay to look stupid, feel stupid, act stupid. 

In this arena,

In this chosen field that we dared to enter,

Often, we will find ourselves dumbfounded,

Stupid-fied. 

Madalas tayo magmumukhang tanga.

Oo, tayo.

Hindi lang ako.

Kung tingin mo ako lang,

NAGKAKAMALI KA.

What are you so afraid of anyway?

It’s not that big of a deal,

It happens to everyone.

When you feel that you studied your heart and butt off for that test,

But failed.

The times that you thought you did an excellent job during history taking,

But your preceptor didn’t.

Those moments when you order a crab in Crustacea,

Thinking, “Wow 165 bucks for Crabs?”

Then the bill comes 3,700 because it was actually 165 per 100g,

Or even just those instances when you forget your rubbershoes at home,

Or failed to see the “except” in an “all are ____________ except ” question?

See, everyone of us have these flashes of stupidity.

Some, intentional;

While most, aren’t.

Therefore, we should just accept it,

Learn to embrace it,

And take solace in the fact that every time we feel stupid,

We get a little bit smarter,

better, faster, stronger.

We remember to wear our rubbershoes to school instead of our daily heels when we have dance practice after class.

We realize that we have to study harder.

We are educated on the proper ways to build patient rapport.

The next time we order crabs, we’ll be smarter enough to ask,

“165 Per 100 grams?”

So go out there.

Live life to the fullest.

And, once in a while, wear a stupid mask.

Love foolishly,

Do a silly dance,

Sing out of tune,

Go all in on a bluff,

Laugh at yourself,

And at your friends as well.

Become a perfectionist who isn’t afraid of stupid,

But instead,

Realizes that even perfetcionsits can be stupid,

Let us all learn from our stupidity.

But if we don’t learn,

Then at least let’s all have one hell of a good time.  

 

Stupid for you,

Shirley

Doc J Surprise

Batch 2015 waiting for the celebrant…

… surprise n*gga!…

… everyone gathers round the med school stud…

…<3…

Happy Birthday Dr. Cuenca!

Kantoboys sa lab.

Thanks for the submission!:)

awesomepetch missed you!

Just because we poured all our time to those weekly exams does not mean nothing else happened with batch 2015. The stories never stopped unfolding and people felt a lot more than just dreading mondays or relief with missing that 65% cutoff by one or two points. 

Sabi nga nila, hindi naman tumitigil ang mundo porket nasa medschool ka. So we’d like to hear from all of you - your stories and musings, anything and everything under the sun. Share the love and send your entries at awesomepetch@gmail.com.

Happy sembreak, everyone! :D

- Omeprazole

Pangarap

Ang galing din naman eh ano…

Nag-aaral ako ngayon dito sa labas, sa tindahan ng kape, at pinaglalaruan nga naman ng tadhana na makita ang aking mga kaklase mula sa kolehiyo at, may isa o dalawa mula pa nung high school. Nakakabighani ang kanilang mga pangarap na ngayon sa buhay.

Namumulat ako sa kaisipan ng tao. Ibang klase! May progression nga talaga! Mula sa mga ungok na nangangarap magkaroon ng madaming pera para makabili ng kanilang paboritong mga magasin, o kaya naman mga damit na maaring magpa-cute sa kanilang itsura kahit di naman at mas lalo lang silang nagiging ewan tignan, ngayo’y nangangarap na ang mga parehong ungok na  yun para sa isang pamilya. Kung baga, tapos na yung mga pangarap nila ng pagkakaroon ng magandang trabaho, problema sa kagustuhan sa buhay o kung ano mang problema at kaisipan na dala ng pagbibinata. O kay bilis nga naman ng buhay natin umusbong, ngunit kung anong bilis nito ay nakakatakot, lalo na sa mga tulad nating di nakakasabay sa pagtanda ng lahat ng iba.

Dahil hanggang ngayon, problema padin natin kung ano ba talaga ang gusto natin para sa ating sarili. Araw-araw, binabanatan tayo ng tadhana, pinapamukha sa atin na “hala, kailangan mong pumili”. Lagi na lang, pipili kung ano ang aaralin, kung ano ang gagawin, kung paano gagawin ang mga bagay para pumasa. Siguro sa ating pagtanda, karaniwan nga ang mga desisyon, ngunit dito lamang sa medisina tayo nabababad sa mga desisyong walang kabuluhan sa ngayon. Ginagawa tayong mga batang pinagdedesisyon sa mga bagay na alam naman nating di natin lahat magagawa. Baka dahil naipit tayo sa isang bagay na matagal na nating pinili na ‘gusto’ natin. Gusto nating maging doktor. Tulad ng mga kababata nating mga manager na o kaya nama’y nagtratrabaho sa talyer, pumili tayo ng gagawin sa ating buhay, dahil nangarap tayo para sa ating mga sarili.

Pero sa pagpili natin ng bagay na iyon, naiwan tayo sa isang napakahabang daan. Sa pagdebelop nga tao, naiwan tayo sa pinili natin, kahit na sa huli magkikita kita din tayo ng ating mga kababata, kung kalian naman proproblemahin na din natin ang mga problema nila: magkapamilya, san titira, paano bubuhayin ang sarili. Sa ngayon, ang bata ng ating mga isipan sa mga bagay na iyan. Di natin yan problema! Di natin dapat indahin, saka na, pagkatapos basahin ang malabong trans na ito. Pero diba dapat? Diba dapat nandun nadin tayo? Lumalabas tuloy na parang kasama sa pagpili natin maging doktor ang pagpipigil sa sarili nating umusad sa ating mga buhay. Sa ilang pagkakataon, parang isa itong panunumbalik sa high school! Isang pagbabalik sa ating kabataan, pag-aaral lamang ang iniinda, at di mga problema sa buhay.

Nakakatakot at nakakatuwa isipin na matapos ang pag-aaral natin ng ganito, bigla na lang tayong tatanda ng di natin namamalayan at di natin alam kung paano. Minsan nakaka-rindi isipin na, “paano kung matapos ang lahat ng ito, di ko parin alam kung paano panghawakan ang lahat sa aking buhay?”, na parang di ko naman natutunan ang mga bagay na iyon sa pagkawala ng trabaho, sa pagtagal sa isang trabaho, sa paglabas ng di aral ang gagawin, sa mga usap kasama ang mga kaibigan, sa pagdate at pagexperyens ng maraming maraming bagay!

Ngunit sa puno’t dulo ng lahat, nakaka-aliw isipin na, kahit na nararamdaman kong parang ang sabog ng direksyon ng buhay natin na puro aral na lang, o kaya naman pagka-aliw sa kahit kay liit na mga bagay, mas may direksyon pa pala ang buhay natin kaysa sa mga kababata natin. Dahil masama mang sabihin, pagkatapos ang maatim mo ang trabahong inaasam mo, ang mga bagay na gusto mo, magawa ang pamilyang biyaya ng maykapal, wala na masyadong puwede pang maasam kundi ang mapunta sa langit. Hahaha. Sa pinipili natin, nagbubukas pa tayo ng mas madaming pintuan para piliin, mas maraming direksyong puwedeng matahak, dahil ang mga problema natin ay binigyan natin ng panahon. Di lamang iyon, nakakadagdag din ang realisasyon na sa pagpapakasabog natin sa pagaaral ngayon, nabibigyan din natin ang ibang tao ng pagkakataon na magkaroon ng mga desisyon. Tama man o mali.

So, sa ngayon, pangarap ko parin maging doktor. Pero di ko nakakalimutan, na sana’y di nga natin kailanman malimutan, na pangarap kong makakapagpagaling (tulad nga ng sabi ng ilan ilan, mapagaling sana ang kanser, di lang yung sakit kundi pati yung sa lipunan), pangarap kong makapagpasiya ng madaming tao, pangarap kong maikot ang mundo at makita ang kagandahan nito, pangarap kong magkaroon ng pamilya na aalagan ko ng mabuti at gagawin kong biyaya sa mundo, pangarap kong ma-in love ng kay tindi at kay lupit na tanging pagbanggit lamang ng katagang pag-ibig ay love story ko ang papasok sa isipan ng mga nakakaalam, pangarap kong magkaroon ng madaming kaibigan (di lamang sa med kung hindi mga di din med student), pangarap kong magkaroon ng magandang bahay sa tabi ng isang beach, pangarap kong magset ng world record (kahit ano), pangarap kong mangarap pa ng madami.

Ngunit sa ngayon tatapusin ko na itong white blood cell trans ko.

….Para sa mga pangarap na sa ngayo’y iiwan natin, ngunit pangako’y gagawin din natin. Pagkatapos ng lahat ng ito.

-Daragat

School and Expectations

by Summer

 Disclaimer: All double-meanings intended.

Admit it, we have all been living in a world of expectations. Sometimes we take it as a challenge, sometimes we get tired of it, sometimes we don’t mind its there, sometimes we tend to forget about it and sometimes we just choose not to care. 

School, and YL6 for that matter, has been no different.  We’re expected to be within our seats 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.  We’re expected not to miss a single requirement in every module. We’re expected to pass every exam we take on Mondays. And yes, in the realm of June til March, it simply is just there.

But didn’t we choose to be here? To keep the dream of being something bigger alive?

Long and hard, sure.  But it’s passion that got us here, and it’s passion that’s gonna get us thru.

Oh well, we have summer to get away.  We have that summer to look forward to: that summer where we’d be nowhere near that ChungTe/MPH-armchair, nowhere near that inevitable biometric machine, far from all the expectations school can impose on us.

That summer where we can do whatever we want, whenever we want; that summer where we feel free, without a single worry in our minds, maybe even hearts.  That ultimate summer getaway we all have been dreaming and waiting for.

We’ve tasted how good it can be, how it would feel to have what we always wanted within our reach, in our own arms.  And no school and expectation can stand in the way.

Summer is a state of mind, our state of mind.

For now, lets choose to be bigger - and we really are - than school and all expectations associated with it.  Lets all look past it, beyond it and simply work on what we want to be for that ultimate summer getaway, with passion, faith and maybe Love. J

PS. Pre-Summer Mode On.

In Response

by Girl B

Idealistic believer, I would like to believe that 2015’s new love stories were neither planned nor entered into lightly. I daresay that these were not the products of idle time or too little sleep. In the year that has passed, 122 of us have come together, some meetings more electric than most, and there is no one to blame.

Idealistic believer, at 23, we are much too old to be playing with hearts. One year into graduate school, we are much too old to be choosing sides, much too old to be putting our friends in the middle of a fight. There is more to relationships than breaking up.

Idealistic believer, that we are all studying to become social catalysts must show that, at every step, we are thinking of something bigger than ourselves. ASMPH has taught us to be mindful of the benefits and consequences (Utility), what is proper (Kant), what is right (Value Ethics), and what is right by God (Christian Ethics). You must know that we have thought the same concerns through – and decided the risk was worth it (as we honestly have the most to lose) - even before we let 2015 in on our love stories.

Again, we are thankful for your sentiments. I apologize if love makes you uncomfortable but also request that you let these relationships unfold as they should. While I cannot speak for all the couples that are and will be, having someone in the batch has changed YL6 for me. I am sure I look forward to going to school (& learning) more than you do :)

I am always and will forever be a fan of love stories, even those with sad endings, because the story is what happens in between.

Love,
Girl B

PS. Game padin kami mgkaraoke kahit di pa kami, kami na, o di na! Sagot pa namin one beers!

A Drop in the Ocean is Still Part of the Ocean

by Isthmus of the Thyroid

This week, the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health officially launched it’s Blue Platito program. Being a zealous student, I readily pledged a portion of my lunch money for the next couple of months to the cause. (I must admit though that I couldn’t resist the little cute blue pin. That was such a good marketing Strategy) To those who aren’t aware, the Blue Platito Program is the school’s contribution to the bigger Blue Plate program being implemented by the four Ateneo Professional Schools (Graduate School of Business, School of Law, School of Government and School of Medicine and Public Health). Detailed below are the details of the program:

The Goal: feed 4,000 kids for a whole year.

The Rationale: How can kids concentrate on their studies when their GI tract are roaring with borborygmis from hell.

The Resources: 6 million pesos (1.5mil per school)

The meal plan: 11.50 pesos per meal per kid (believe it or not, this amount is enough to feed a person a healthy meal! Now you start to wonder why you pay so much for lunch food)

Looking at the project details above, it is very clear that there is a big gaping hole in this project. Yes, it is true that the project is a noble one. (anything that tries to close the wide gap between the rich and the poor is indeed poor) However, considering the amount of resources being generated, (6 million pesos every year is no joke) the effect of feeding four thousand school kids one meal every school day may just be, in the end, a drop in the big big ocean of malnourished children in the country. Given this, it is easy to think “why the hell bother?” If at the end of the day, the program is able to feed four thousand kids, what is that compared to the millions more who still remain hungry and agonizing to remain awake during class? Will it even make a dent? Will it even matter?

Well, the food matters to those four thousand kids. And it matters a lot.

We can go on day after day, month after month, debating the theoretical merits and faults of the project but at the end of the day, what matters are real life outcomes that affect people in significant ways that can never be fully captured by any model or study. For the four thousand kids that will benefit from the program, it will affect them in a very real sense. And in my opinion, living in a country with so many things stacked against it, every drop in the ocean counts no matter how small. If we don’t try to help now, who else will?

In ending this entry, I’d like to quote a line I saw in 9gag.com (of all places) that I believe fully captures what this program is all about.

“It is impossible” said Pride. “It is risky” said experience. “It is pointless” said reason. “Give it a try” whispered the heart.

I wish all the organizers and the project itself all the luck I can spare. (cause I need to keep a little some some for myself given the perpetual exams being slammed my way) I will gladly be doing my part and follow through with my pledge and probably help out in other means when the opportunity arises. I would also like to  request people who can help in this project (AHEM ASMPH2015) to help out. It’s really not much for us to shed 11.50 pesos per day but it will matter a lot for the kids who will get to eat a healthy and nutritious meal for a change.

On Old Blog Entries: Ang Konsepto ng 5-second Hug

by Caseous Necrosis

I came across an old blog of one of our dearest batch mates. I think it’s alright to share these entries with you, so that you can think about other things aside from our lessons in school.

 And to the one who made these entries that I’m going to share with everyone, I hope you start writing again. Your blog truly entertained me over the years, and I hope you start writing for our batch this time. 

Ang Konsepto ng 5-Second Hug

Base sa sariling karanasan.

Ito yung yakap mo kay “the one”
Gusto mong ipakita na “hey, i like you, love you”
pero ayaw mong mahuli ka niya,
at least for that moment na sobrang pinapakita mo ngang you “like him/her, love him/her.”
ayaw mo ring isipin niyang friendly hug lang ito.
at the same time ayaw mo ring isipin niyang “ay may gusto ba talaga ito sa akin?”
kasi sa 5-second hug, 
sinusubukan mong i-conceal yung vulnerability mo kay “the one” sa mismong pagyakap mo sa kanya.

O ngayon,
Bakit 5?
kasi kung 4 or below, iisipin niyang wala lang yun.
kung 6 above naman, iisipin niyang “ay waley may gusto ‘to sa akin.”

5 para di mo na kailangan talagang isipin yung dahilan ng pagyakap.
basta yung mahalaga ay naramdaman mo yung yakap na mahigpit.
naramdaman mo yung saya ng pagyakap
naramdaman mo yung taong yumayakap sa’yo
for 5 seconds.

Hindi bitin, hindi sobra.
Basta 5 seconds lang.

Try mo. :)

PS. Yung pagbibilang ng 0-5 sa isip ginagawa ha. Baka kasi gawin mo yun out-loud. Mabibisto ka, sige!

That’s it for now, batchmates! 

Purposely searching for your old blog entries, 

Caseous Necrosis

Caution: Love

by Idealistic Believer

Out of severe concern, I point out, rather insensitively a DANGER that most of us in our batch seems to put each one of us through.

2015, I officially address the crossroads in which we place the batch in. Not an imminent crossroad where we already have to choose, but we stray on thick fogs that might one day take us on a wrong turn, and lead us into that crossroad.

2015, we walk on thin ice regarding the flux of love stories we currently engender INSIDE our batch. I’m both happy and scared for everyone. Happy that we found our inspiration and our reasons, and more fodder for our mouths to talk about till they run dry. Happy that we were all just lonely weirdos then. Now most of us are no longer lonely. But, scared. Scared of a giant WHAT IF that can engulf the entirety of our batch. WHAT IF one of those couples breaks up?

From that awful awful scenario, and with the linger of our current module on family and community health, I believe that we catch a disease that would’ve only affected the relationship if it were only related to the batch by association. The more love teams we make in our batch, the more we ‘adopt’ relationships unto ourselves and more responsibilities to maintain those relationships so that divisions in our batch don’t occur. For if those relationships break, so will our batch be broken. A will go to friends of A and B will go to friends of B, the friends of A and B who think what A or B did was wrong will go to the other side, and that is not the worst of what can happen. A can be ostracized for being a jerk and he will then leave out of spite or live a dysfunctional existence like someone who does not have anyone to go anywhere with. 

Again, I am proud of all the love that is spreading, and this was written not out of disgust and discouragement, but rather of concern. If the risk of this division happening was not so big, then I guess I wouldn’t have written this. 

I am always and forever going to be a fan of love stories, but not those with sad endings.

2015, I am hoping and wishing either of two things, that one, all the couples and soon to be couples in the batch do not break up and put us to sides, or two, that even though this happens, may we never forget that we are one batch, despite the nitty-gritty of break ups and awkwardness.

PS. Let’s just drink or karaoke or do something about it (if it ever came to that point). I believe we are not just a batch. We are FAMILY