DRAMAFEST

(Hello Bloggers! Apologies for such a long hiatus!)

It was when I was driving to the event this morning that I was about to attend my last dramafest as a student of the Ilokano program.  Like my fellow program enthusiasts, I was excited for our work to be featured on today's program and I looked forward to showcasing to the community how valuable this program is to me and my fellow classmates. This semester's theme, "Lucky you live Hawaii" inspired many plays that conjured up ALOT of thoughts and emotions in me.  At a time in my life when i'm most emotional and conflicted (between staying here or going to the mainland to pursue a master's degree------opportunities that I am forever grateful to parents/family/teachers/community), I think I read into things too much today to look for signs---to help me make such a tough decision and to help me make sense of my life. The "Iliw" music video made me cry and hurt in advance for the iliw that I will have to endure for 2+yrs if I leave behind my loved ones and the community base that I have built in the university and community over the years.  The Farrington youth and seeing Jeremy Sabugo perform his Ilokano rendition of Freddie Aguilar reminded me of the hope and the potential that the local youth have that remain unrecognized and unappreciated if it wasn't for programs like ours and people like us to bring confidence and guidance to them. This realization makes me ache with guilt to think that I might have to be abandoning them by leaving. The social ills that IP331 highlighted reminded me of the obligation I have to the community that gave to me while IP368B reminded me of my ancestor's sacrifices, and encouraged me to take every opportunity I can that was afforded by the expense of labor and hardships of those who came before me. Despite the dilemma, the act that brought me to tears was our very own video produced by Ilokano 402. Agyamanak ta nakapagtimpuyog-ak kadagitoy nga tao a nangisuro kaniak ken kadagitoy kaeskuelaak nga nangited iti ado a ragsak. I am proud of myself and my classmates for taking advantage of the opportunity that we had to join the only Ilokano program in America and I speak for them also when I say that we will be forever grateful for the sacrifices that our instructors have made and continue to make in efforts to keep us tied to the motherland and to remind us of our rich and proud heritage without which we would forever lack our confidence, and part of our souls, had we not been acquainted with the knowledge----names, individuals, songs and literature--- that helped us explain and define who we are and where we are going as individuals and as a people. I hope that the viewers and the underclassmen understood the message we portrayed in our video. We're lucky that we live in Hawaii because we are blessed with instructors and a program that you will not find anywhere else.  Agyamanak. Dios ti agngina.