A few days before 2021 ended, I got a present from an old friend. She sent me images via Messenger and right below it, she wrote that she was proud of me for I made it happen.
Apparently, it was photos of my entry from her old slam book which I signed back in 2003 when we were just high school freshmen. I clicked the photos and my initial response was, "gosh, what ugly handwriting!" 😅 I asked for clearer photos to see what she meant by her being "proud of me" and there is the greatest achievement part I wrote: if I will be a lawyer.
It was already past 11 in the evening when I zoomed in on the photos and yet I felt so awake. Like my friend, I was amazed by the revelation because firstly, I cannot remember ever actively dreaming of becoming a lawyer, and secondly, OMG YES, I REALLY DID MAKE IT HAPPEN!
"Manifesting" is one of the online crazes of this pandemic. To manifest is to make something obvious. When you are manifesting, you think aspirational thoughts to make them real. Basically, a Gen Z variation of the classic Bible verse, "Ask and you shall receive."
One of the popular ways of "manifesting" is by posting about your goals online. If you're from the Philippines, you've probably seen the meme where Maine Mendoza, referring to actor Arjo Atayde, tweeted "arjo cutie" almost two decades ago when the former was still a nobody. Then they got to work on a project and in 2018, they officially became a couple. How cool is that, di ba? Pangarap mo lang noon, katabi mo na ngayon! 😂 That's essentially how you manifest. You dream so loud that God or any supreme being that you believe in, gets bugged by it, indulges your desperation, and then grants your deepest desires. Syempre, the most important ingredient in manifesting is acting on it. You can't get a girl or anything for that matter if you are just confined in your room, right? Nasa Diyos ang awa, nasa tao ang gawa.
Why am I going on about this? Well, first, the Bar is in about three weeks. It's gonna be a crazy January for this year's bar takers due to huge changes in the exam format. I can only imagine how frantic everyone is and I applaud all those who continue to soldier on despite the circumstances. Second, as I mentioned earlier, I cannot believe that I actually wrote about becoming a lawyer! I remember kasi my go-to ambition when signing slum books back in high school was to become a nurse which was the most in-demand job before. Lahat gusto maging nurse noon kasi yun ang ticket mo to go abroad! But I did not take entrance exams naman to nursing schools. Bandwagoner lang? LOL. And third, for years I kept on asking myself if I was truly meant to become an attorney. I consistently questioned my capabilities and some of my choices. Despite overcoming the bar, I still get insecure at times! 💔
So I take that old slam book entry as a poignant yearend gift as I make my way to a new decade, a new season in my life. An affirmation that I am where I'm supposed to be. It brought back so many memories and made me reexamine my life. It made me appreciate all the challenges and feel grateful for every lesson learned. It made me realize how far I've come and how much farther I can go. God has been so good to me, I am truly thankful for every little thing. And as I embrace my married life and set out with my husband, I take it as a gentle reminder from childhood — to never stop manifesting. Despite the hardships brought by the pandemic and life in general, I should carry on and never give up for even in the most mundane of times, God does listen!
May this year be full of manifests coming true! Happy New Year, everyone! 💝
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