Trashing the Geek Stereotype
by Carlos Esguerra
Jr.
March
17, 2001.
Saturday.
The
Grade 7 pupils of La Salle Green Hills held their Graduation Rites at the St.
Benilde Gymnasium. Sharing the limelight with the seventh graders were the 21
members of the Grade 6 Accelerated Class, including myself, who met all the
scholastic requirements and persevered through all the trials throughout our
stay in grade school.
Most
of us started in Grade 1, with the original accelerated class. Through the
years we battled through exams, tests and advanced lessons. We watched our
classmates unwillingly leave our class because they failed to meet the academic
standards needed for this special class. As the tests got harder and more faces
disappeared from the class, we feared that we would suffer the same fate that
our departed classmates did before reaching Grade Six. But fortunately, the 21
of us are here, finally reaching our ultimate goal: being accelerated to high
school.
Based
on what you have heard so far, your impression of us might be along these
lines: stiff, prim and proper nerds who are greatly obsessed with studying and
really, don’t know how to have fun.
Right?
That’s
what we are, right?
Stiff,
prim and proper nerds who…
Eeeeeeehhhhh.
Wrong.
***
February
12, 2001.
Monday.
Caught
in the middle of a glorious five-day weekend, our class decides to hold a LAN
party at a nearby network gaming spot, instead of the normal
what-you’d-expect-from-an-honors-class spend the vacation reading textbooks.
After a fun-filled five hours facing the computer monitor and blasting
classmates apart, we say goodbye to each other and head our own separate ways.
I
head over to La Salle to pick up my mom, who is having a meeting with the other
parents regarding a get-together. While I’m there, I bump into some of my
classmates. Discovering that the parents’ meeting will still go on for some
time, we head over to the gym, almost empty except for some people testing out
the sound system for an upcoming concert. We spend the time playing a game of
basketball, instead of the normal what-you’d-expect-from-an-honors-class talk
about the lessons at school in your spare time with classmates.
The
meeting ends at about 7:15, and we all go home, tired and weary, but at the
same time cheerful and jubilant after a day spent with each other.
Well,
after reading this part, you’d probably be thinking something along the lines
of: Not as nerdy as before…
Not
quite.
In
fact, not at all.
***
Sometime
in February, 2000.
Friday.
Still
in the fifth grade, we have our intramurals, where our basketball team, which I
am part of, has reached the championship game. We play our hearts out, but
unluckily, we can’t crack the opposing team’s tight defense, and we lose,
settling for the silver medal.
But
still, that was pretty surprising, because honors classes are traditionally
whooped during sports activities. As one anonymous parent of another section
said about us in Grade 2, “All brains, but no brawn.”
Can’t
say that anymore, can you?
***
March
28, 2001.
Wednesday.
It
is the birthday of the Elementary Parents’ Auxiliary (EPA) president and one of
our class’ couple representatives. It is also to celebrate our exemplary
elementary years. My parents and I arrive at Tia Maria’s in Malate, where the
affair is to be held. We plan to depart from the party at 9:30, since my father
is an early riser and cannot stay up very late. I dance the night away with my
classmates, taking a few sips from a margarita, and just talking with each other.
After dancing to countless tunes, it is suddenly 12:30 a.m., and we are still
at the party, chatting with each other. Realizing the time, my family leaves
the gathering, and so do others. On the road going home, I just realize how
much fun partying with your classmates was, so fun that you wouldn’t want to
leave.
Still
nerdy?
You
be the judge.
***
After an
intense change of character personality, from nerds to not quite nerds, you
must want to know, who are we, really?
We
are many things to many people.
To
the teachers, we are the model students. The pupils that the rest of the school
should emulate. Intelligent, disciplined, responsible.
To
the parents, we are the children to be proud of (I’m at a bit of a loss for
words here). In exchange for the loving care they give us, we give them our
good grades, awards, and ultimately, that light feeling inside you that just
makes you smile.
To
the rest of the school, we may seem a bit like antagonists. The teacher’s pets,
missing one grade level, high grades, just to name a few.
But
really, who are we?
To
us, who are we?
To
tell you the truth, we’re just young boys who just want to have fun. No, we’re
not obsessed with studying. No, we don’t memorize the encyclopaedia. We just
want to make the most out of every day of our lives. Okay, so five days a week,
we pass all the tests, perfect some, study, but through all this we don’t
forget to have fun. 30 minutes shooting hoop, maybe. Or an hour of computer
games. You need to enjoy life because if you don’t, it will seem like a drag,
and nobody would like that at all. But if all you want to do is have fun and
loaf around, that wouldn’t be nice either, because you won’t really have a
sense that you’re trying you’re best in your duties as a good student. We
fulfill our obligations as students, and at the same time we don’t forget that
life isn’t really much if your not enjoying it. After all, as saying goes, “It is good to have an end to journey
towards, but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” It’s nice to have
an ambition and work towards that ambition, but it will not matter if you did
not enjoy the path towards that ambition.
***
Call us nerds.
Call us geeks.
Call us whatever you want to.
But we know who we are, and we know
we’re not nerds, not geeks.
We’re just ourselves.
***
Homeroom Advisor: Mrs. Iluminada Viado
1.
Jose Ricardo Abastillas “Jay-Ar”
2.
Joseph Patrick Amores “JP”
3.
Jose Angelo Austria “Jo-Gel”
4.
Ernest Dominic Buhangin “Ernest”
5.
Gregorio Camacho “Greg”
6.
Carlos Martin Esguerra Jr. “Chino”
7.
Jose Ramon Gelvezon “Mon”
8.
Alexis Brian Jalijali “Brian”
9.
Miguel Antonio Jauregui “Mico”
10. Raphael Lorenzo
Laforteza “Ralph”
11. Rod Ken Lascano
“Ken”
12. Timothy John
Magtoto “Tim”
13. Jeronimo Manzanero
“Jeron”
14. Jan Joseph Ryan
Monje “Ryan”
15. Filemon Pestaño Jr.
“Fil”
16. Kim Patrick
Pullante “Kim”
17. Camilo Miguel
Sanchez “Camilo”
18. Daryll Santos “Daryll”
19. Andre Anton Suarez
“Andre”
20. Joseph Daniel Sy
“Joel”
21. Juan Miguel Tuason
“Mikee”