JULY 2007

Most of the concrete plans and proposed activities for the month of June have been launched and concretized in July. Some of these activities were designed for the whole school year –accompanying a seminarian in his journey in the formation through ratio, giving conferences, delivering a homilies, and conducting guitar lesson. There were more activities scheduled for the succeeding months. Let me share my experiences and reflections on the things we’ve already began.

English Class. Since June, I had been conducting English tutorial classes every Wednesday from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. I would call my class “A Journey Toward Better English.” The phrase “English tutorial class” appeared to be very formal which somehow emphasized the disparity between the students and a teacher. On the other hand, “a journey toward better English” sounded more like a long educational travel or an exciting continuing trip of the adventurous sojourners seeking to quench their thirst for knowledge. I assumed the role of a “tour guide” to the tourists, the students.

In our journey, we dropped by, visited, and explored the beautiful scenes of the English language — nouns, adjectives, interjections, and the like. Those who delayed the trip, meaning, those who come in late for the class were given assignments to research on the meaning of certain words would be discussed in the succeeding meeting. In this way, not only did they learn to observe punctuality, they also helped enrich the vocabulary of the class.

As we traveled to better English and as I turned on the engine of the vehicle we are riding, I was quite perturbed because I did not have any units in Education and I am not a teacher by profession. I am like a “tabula rasa” (i.e., a plain wax tablet) with regard to the methods of teaching, classroom management, the art of lecturing, conducting recitations, and other essential matters in teaching.

By coincidence, a friend lent me the book, “Reviewer for the Licensure Examination for Teachers” by Cecilio D. Duka, Ed.D. My friend’s helpfulness paved the way for me to have a glimpse of the important things in the field of imparting knowledge. For a couple of days, I lifted through the pages of the book and had a personal crash course in Education.

Although becoming a teacher was never my childhood dream and English was never my favorite subject, I had learned to love what I am doing — guiding the interested tourists toward better English. Despite my limitations, I successfully conquered the struggles I encountered in preparing my lessons. Thus, I began to dream of becoming a member of the group, “midwife of knowledge” — the educators.

Homily. To deliver a homily during the six o’clock morning Mass every last Sunday of the month at San Isidro Labrador Parish in Catalunan Grande, Davao City proved to be a good exposure. For the month of July, I delivered my homily twice on July 22 and 29, 2007, the 4th and 5th Sunday.

As I prepared for my first homily on July 22, 2007 (4th Sunday of the month), my baptism of fire, I felt anxious because I don’t have any idea as to who the majority of the churchgoers would be. Would they be professionals? Students? Or ordinary lay people? I was a bit apprehensive as to what kind of approach I would use. Was there a need to crack jokes? Should I simply share my personal experiences? Or was there a need to have a visual aide?

The Gospel for that Sunday was about Jesus’ visit to Mary and Martha (Luke 10: 38-42). In the Gospel, Jesus was telling Martha, “You are anxious and worried about many things (verse 41).” Hhhmmmm…I could resonate. I was exactly in the shoes of Martha and I could relate with her anxieties and worries. If Jesus was physically standing or sitting beside me, perhaps He would reprimand me with the same line, “Abs, you are anxious and worried about many things.” The Gospel admonished me to do the same thing. That was right! I should not be bothered with what to say in my homily; anyway, it was not just my own battle – it was Jesus’ battle and mine. I recalled the invaluable lessons I learned from Fr. Linus Nicasio, SVD who taught me “The Principles of Homiletics” and some “homiletical techniques”; the late Fr. Anthony Ceresko, OSFS who gave me the idea of “reading between the lines”; and Fr. Randy Flores, SVD who reminded me to “wrestle with the text,” read the text of the material over and over again. I had the necessary ingredients – the lectures of Fr. Nicasio, and the ideas imparted by the two Old Testament Biblical scholars, Fr. Ceresko and Fr. Flores. It would now just be a matter of how I would cook these ingredients well in order to come up with a good dish.

In preaching, I would keep in mind that Christ is The Actor and The Message. As a preacher, I needed to reflect and listen to the message of The Message, to the words of The Word, and communicate to The Word not only in silence but also with The Word in His Written Words. I considered myself an instrument and a servant of The Message conveying His message to His flock.

Ratios and Conferences. Talking to the seminarians individually and giving conferences to them were among the pillars of prefecting. My work as Prefect of the First Year seminarians required creativity and positive approach. As a neophyte in this field of endeavor, I considered it an interesting and challenging aspect of my work. It was akin to a treasure that I had to dig with a shovel of sincerity and a spade of dedication.

Conducting ratios entailed more than merely knowing the background of certain individuals. It was an avenue that enabled the formand and the formator to start building friendship. This, however, would depend on the individual’s response or on how a person would view such thing. In conducting ratios, I applied what I learned in Pastoral Counseling – the appropriate gestures, actions to be avoided, proper decorum in communicating, showing interest in what a person would say, and other similar behaviors.

Ratios could be experienced in different levels. The mood of the persons involved in a particular ratio would then become the barometer. Sometimes ratio could be “revealing,” i.e., when someone would talk of his life spontaneously without any reservations and the conversation became free-wheeling. Another was “surprising” which was most likely an offshoot of revealing. After a person’s outpour of emotions and expression of thoughts, I became more understanding and I would say at the back of my mind, “Ah kaya pala…!” or “Owhzzz, really?!” Sometimes, ratio would turn into a casual conversation, especially when it would be in a question and answer form.

On giving conferences. At first, I was apprehensive on what topic to discuss. The thought of giving a topic of my choice was fine, but I found it more helpful if it would be according to the level of the seminarians’ formation. I wanted to be sure that I would be proceeding at the right pace. If only I had brought along with me my notes in my First Year in the seminary, it would have been easier. I felt relieved when Fr. Bong later handed me the list of possible topics for the Prefect’s Conference.

Creativity was a very useful tool in giving conferences. It provided a lively ambiance and the audience became more interested. Once, I showed a video presentation of the captured moments in my “seminary journey.” Everybody seemed to be amused and rejuvenated. I could see in their faces how excited they were as they look forward to viewing the next picture. They laughed and teased me saying “…Ahhh, siFfrater..” and also commented, “hahahaha…kamukha ni Villason (a 2nd year seminarian)” — actually, they were referring to my classmate, Rodel, who had been assigned in Germany.

The seminarians had been very attentive when I talked about my experiences, especially when I mentioned about my love life during college. With smiles on their faces, they blurted out, “oooyyyy…yeeehheeyy.” I understand how they felt as they were teenagers who got animated with my sharing. Of course, I emphasized the lesson behind those experiences I shared. In one of our recent conferences, some First Year seminarians remarked, “Frats, video presentation ulit para ganahan kami.” I just smiled and the best words for me to say were “next time.”

Conducting ratios and giving conferences was a lot of fun. It provided an opportunity to know and understand more about other people, about myself, and discovering God in the little ordinary situations of our lives. Looking at ratios and conferences as mere work seemed to be a Herculean task, but considering them as a way of reaching out and sharing life became a joyful way of unveiling the mystery of life.

Guitar Lessons. In my edited diary for the month of June, I wrote, “These tasks (I was referring to my work as a Regent) open the doors for me to develop my potential skills. At the same time, these are tools for me to create opportunities for others, especially the young sems, to discover more about themselves and the community and to further develop their God-given talents.” A concrete example of developing their talents is by conducting guitar lessons.

Forty-one (41) seminarians showed interest to join the guitar lesson for various reasons — basically, to learn play the guitar, to further enhance one’s ability to play the guitar, and discover various techniques in playing the guitar. Teaching the 41 seminarians all at the same time was quite impossible because there were only five guitars functioning. The only remedy was to divide them into groups. The guitar lessons commenced on the first week of July and would probably end on the last week of August. The next batch would be on September until the last week of October. Every batch of seminarians would have their training for about a month. In order that all the 41 seminarians would be given a chance to undergo a guitar lessons, I limited my lectures to the basics of playing the guitar. Should there be anyone who would like to pursue the advanced level, then I would gladly help them.

For my lectures, I used the book “A Guide to Guitar Enthusiasts” by Alex E. Joseph and I surf the internet for supplementary materials. Lectures were done every Monday afternoon for 30 minutes. The students made use of their free time during the week for their practices and exercises. As with a classroom setting, I gave my students simple exams, both written and “hands-on” exams, to determine if they would be ready for the next lesson.

The sound of my students’ fingers running through the strings reminded me about the times when I was 12 years old — I also attended guitar lessons in a half-occupied classroom; I could hardly press the strings on the fingerboard; and I was too attached to my guitar to the point that I placed it by my bedside when I sleep. Through the years, with much passion, interest, and patience, I discovered some techniques like dropping the guitar tuning (as introduced by Mark Tremonti, lead guitarist of the band Alterbridge) and I began to develop my own style within the discipline of alternative music. However, when I would be in my class, I did not promote the manner of playing alternative music.

Once the 30-session was over, the students would slowly leave the kiosk (where I conducted guitar lesson) and return the guitars to the chapel. Similarly, I would leisurely put my guitar in its case with a feeling of fulfillment. I would always feel grateful that God entrusted me with a talent in playing the guitar. Like the good and faithful servants in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), it was my obligation to take good care of it, to use it according to its purpose, and to multiply it by sharing it with others. I wished that my students would realize the value of what we had been doing and it was my fervent hope that someday, they too would be inspired to teach others to play the guitar, so that the talent entrusted to us by God would be passed on to others which would eventually multiply in number all the more.

Blooper: It was the first day of the apostolate when I kept myself busy for my driving practice in a humpy bumpy road. Retchie, a seminary scholar, patiently accompanied me to places where it would be conducive for practice. At 11:00 am, we fetched the seminarians from the different apostolate areas. It was my first time to drive a car with more than ten passengers on board. On our way home, we were cracking jokes. I momentarily let go of the steering wheel and clapped my hands just to annoy one of my companions (hehe). Before we reached a curved road, Retchie said “Frats, kampanteng kampane na ang mga seminarista sa iyo ah…” I look at Retchi and replied confidently, “oo nga eh, parang matagal na nila akong driver!” We were laughing aloud! Upon saying these words, I noticed that the tires on the right side of the L300 FB van were already at the edge of the road. I tried to maneuver the steering wheel to make a left, but it was too late as the tires had plunged into the mud. The more I stepped on the accelerator (silinyador), the more the tires got submerged into the mud. Instead of relaxing after hours of apostolate, the seminarians had no choice but to help push the L300 FB off the mud.

Lesson: Keep your eyes on the road while driving!