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Political Science Appreciation Post Part 1

Paano nga ba magiging mahusay ang isang hamak na estudyante na tulad ko?

I’d like to answer this question by the end of this Political science department, faculty, organization and student appreciation post. 

There are three basic reasons why I took Political science as my undergraduate course in college.

1.) Because my parents said so but it was partly my decision, too.

2.) Even before, I wanted to become a legislator to help change our country.

3.) I entered the University of the Philippines in the hopes of getting into the UP College of Law in the future after taking the “best” pre law course which is political science. Disregard the first two reasons because all I wanted to be when I was a kid is to become a lawyer.

Little did I know, polsci is something more majestic than I thought it was before.

I remember our first class with Professor Mendoza in PS 11.  He asked us if we would take law after finishing our undergraduate studies as political science majors.  Four hands were raised that day ( me, jeff, jayjay, and ate nicole k. ). Right after, we were asked to drop his subject. My heart dropped.  I wanted to cry but I did not, instead, I smiled.  Of course, I did not drop his subject. As a freshman, I took it as a challenge. I took the challenge of accepting the course as it is and not correlating it with law. Thank you, Prof. Amado Mendoza, for letting me realize that Polsci is not just a pre-law course. I will never forget that day.

A semester had passed and I had to take PS 14.  I was this close to shifting to another course because I lost interest in political science, it must have been the way we were taught in ps 11. In PH 434, I learned to fully embrace what it means to be a political science major. With the help of Mr. Pilapil, my professor in political science 14, I realized my responsibility as a citizen of our country. During one of our classes, I scribbled a checklist saying: 

[ ] Fix the Constitution, Review-revise-modify

[ ] Fix the formula and electoral system

[ ] World Peace

Then and there, I realized how bad I want to change our country for the better. Supporting my second reason above.  Mr. Pilapil, thank you for letting me realize my purpose as a political science major.

Another course close to my heart is Soc Sci II under Mr. Naval.  Although we were quite slow in the discussion ( by slow I meant: We’re still in Plato while others are already in Machiavelli), it made me appreciate the things I never knew existed, just like science, but way better.  It was also on our first day of class in this subject that I decided to serve my fellow UP students, not only as a lawyer but also as a professor.  Although I  still do not know what domain I will be teaching, one thing is for sure.  I would like to teach social science II.  Mr. Naval, thank you for inspiring me to become what you are now, a teacher.

As each day passes, I continue to fall in love with my course kahit gaano pa niya ako pinapahirapan on so many levels. 

ps: forgive grammatical errors but criticisms will do.

Eleksyon nanaman.

Nako. Nakakairita talaga. Di ko alam kung paano ko sisimulan itong entry na ‘to.

Nakakairita lang talaga yung mga kandidatong uhaw na uhaw sa kapangyarihan.  Lahat gagawin para manalo. Kumbaga parang idol niya si Machiavelli. Nakakainis. 

Anu na nangyari sa pagkakaisa kung tuwing eleksyon magkakaaway ang lahat? Anu ba ang mga problema natin? 

Gusto lang naman namin ng malinis at fair na eleksyon. Hindi ba pwedeng mangyari yun? 

Lumaban lang ng patas, please. Nalilito din kasi kaming mga boboto. 

Gravity and Inertia.

There are two things you should avoid when dealing with science, gravity and inertia because these two are the hardest to deal with. I am not pertaining to the kind of gravity that keeps us on the ground, the earth on its orbit, or the apple falling from the tree, nor the type of inertia that says that an object at rest will remain at rest unless acted upon by an outside force. What I am talking about is the concept of falling and the concept of getting what you really want but you just can’t. 

Like gravity, you cannot stop yourself from falling, falling in love.  Because when it happens, it is just there. Just like gravity, love is a force that pulls you to your other half, in the same way that gravity keeps us on the ground. Love is what keeps us all together, our family, our friends, our enemies, our teachers and everyone else, the way gravity prevents disorder in the universe. Well, there are also some downfalls about gravity. You would know that gravity has left an impact on you when you were up there and suddenly, you fell. It would hurt, of course because of Physics, it is just the way things are. Just like love, when you are at the peak of happiness and ecstasy, and everything falls down like a roller coaster ride at the crest of its route going to its deepest track, the trough, you end up in despair.  Love and gravity is not all glitz and glamour, because when it fades, it turns to rust. How saddening this may be, it always depends on how we handle this kinds of situations. When dealing with gravity, make sure you are not in the highest place. Play it safe.  When dealing with love, do not give your all, leave some for yourself. This way, you would not end up that hurt.

Like how inertia works, a goal, an objective, a dream will remain unchecked unless you act upon it. One time, I was in a car, reaching for food in the container, then my father turns to a sharp left turn. Inertia acted upon me such that I can no longer reach the food I was attempting to grasp.  After a good fight against the laws of physics, I did not triumph. Maybe it is how hard you fight for something that makes it truly attainable.  Maybe I did not try hard enough.  Like inertia, we all need that extra push from the outside to truly realize the importance of what we want in our lives. Like that external force that makes movement possible, we need our family, our friends, our idols to make us realize how hard we want things, not only material but dreams and imaginations true.    How effective inertia is, action must always come from within. It may be against the laws of Physics to make a thing move without exerting any effort on it, but as far as I know, we, humans, all have the ability to realize our full potential. Just do not always rely on inertia, because it may come late. Trust yourself, you are the only one who knows yourself best.

The bottomline is, we can always relate our lives with the laws, postulates, and theories of science, whichever branch it may be. It just so happens that I can relate mine with Physics. 

Other than these two, I love everything about science.  Maybe it is because they are not that hard to understand. Even how mind boggling this area is, science will always have a special place in my heart.  Even if I took a course in college that is the exact opposite of this subject, I will always love science, and all its branches, how many there may be.