The Story of Class 2006
The story of Class 2006 is a story of faith. Five years ago, no one ever thought that a far-out dream would someday become a reality. The story of Class 2006 started with a story of one man's vision, with a story of 44 brave souls who responded to this vision, and with a story of a handful of dedicated doctors who pledged to become a faculty of a young medical school. The story of class 2006 is a story of how optimism triumphed over skepticism. The story of class 2006 is an underdog story, of how 24 medical students braved the stormy training and weathered the cruel blows of med school life, eventually hurdling the almost impossible challenge. The story of Class 2006 is the story of Divine Providence, proof that God is the God of underdogs, who shows preference for those in the eyes of society are the least and the last.
Who would have thought that this small and almost unheard of medical school would come through despite the at times almost overwhelming pessimism and criticism? I remember when I was in first year medical school and I was given the honor to make a response speech during the first opening day in behalf of my fellow medical students and scholars. I remember saying that we shall prevail and shall head Ad Astra per aspera, to the stars through difficulties. I remember the difficulties. I cannot forget the struggles we all had to undergo. No one gets spared from the trials. Many have fallen along the way. Many have felt the weight of the pressure. Many decided to quit. Many times I have thought of quitting. But like I said, this is a story of Divine Providence. Faith tells me that throughout the struggles that were ahead of us, God led the way. He did not take away the obstacles. He rather taught us how to leap over. He taught us how to bend around, to climb over and when necessary to crawl under. God indeed has a funny way of answering prayers. For when I asked for strength, when I asked for patience, when I asked for perseverance, He did not just give me those virtues. He also gave me the opportunities to use those virtues. And it was all but necessary.
While our passionate faculty trained us hard to become good and efficient doctors, I have felt my God training me to become a Christian doctor. There have been many occasions throughout med school that one has to undergo humiliations only to learn humility, to undergo hardship to acquire strength. My exposure to patients in hospitals and in the community became an eye opener and another opportunity to practice whatever Christian virtue that has been given me. Many lessons were learned and are yet to be learned.
The story of Class 2006 is a story of a journey. It was a long road but I was happy to have travelled with 23 other people, all equally courageous and committed. All dreamers, all hardworking souls striving to become the dream they have been dreaming of.
Last August 15, 2007, the story has come to its climax. It can be likened to the final battle of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Return of the King, where the Riders of the West came upon the armies of the Dark Lord of Mordor. August 15, in the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the dream has finally come true. Gone are the harsh stings from skeptics who thought the USLS College of Medicine would crumble on its own. Gone are the cruel remarks of pessimism and disbelief. All are replaced with moments of joy, of relief, of excitement and of hope. The long struggle has been rewarded. Thus, all that we have been through do not matter anymore. All the mistakes, the failures and the soorows, all are gone, perhaps not entirely forgotten, but at least displaced by emotions of ecstasy. The story of Class 2006 is a happy-ending story.
But it is not over yet. The story continues. The committment persists. The passion to serve endures. The feeling of gratitude lingers perpetually. The solid faith, the belief in dreams, it shall sustain us in the next chapter of our lives. The tears we have shed, the energies that were drained from us, they all stand as testament to the faith we bear in our hearts. Now, the story of the Medical Education in the Province of Negros Occidental is the story of Class 2006. It is a story worth telling. It is a story worth sharing. It is a story worth emulating. It is a story that will never be forgotten. For it is a story of victory, of hope, of faith, a story that proves to all, that dreams do come true.
Who would have thought that this small and almost unheard of medical school would come through despite the at times almost overwhelming pessimism and criticism? I remember when I was in first year medical school and I was given the honor to make a response speech during the first opening day in behalf of my fellow medical students and scholars. I remember saying that we shall prevail and shall head Ad Astra per aspera, to the stars through difficulties. I remember the difficulties. I cannot forget the struggles we all had to undergo. No one gets spared from the trials. Many have fallen along the way. Many have felt the weight of the pressure. Many decided to quit. Many times I have thought of quitting. But like I said, this is a story of Divine Providence. Faith tells me that throughout the struggles that were ahead of us, God led the way. He did not take away the obstacles. He rather taught us how to leap over. He taught us how to bend around, to climb over and when necessary to crawl under. God indeed has a funny way of answering prayers. For when I asked for strength, when I asked for patience, when I asked for perseverance, He did not just give me those virtues. He also gave me the opportunities to use those virtues. And it was all but necessary.
While our passionate faculty trained us hard to become good and efficient doctors, I have felt my God training me to become a Christian doctor. There have been many occasions throughout med school that one has to undergo humiliations only to learn humility, to undergo hardship to acquire strength. My exposure to patients in hospitals and in the community became an eye opener and another opportunity to practice whatever Christian virtue that has been given me. Many lessons were learned and are yet to be learned.
The story of Class 2006 is a story of a journey. It was a long road but I was happy to have travelled with 23 other people, all equally courageous and committed. All dreamers, all hardworking souls striving to become the dream they have been dreaming of.
Last August 15, 2007, the story has come to its climax. It can be likened to the final battle of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Return of the King, where the Riders of the West came upon the armies of the Dark Lord of Mordor. August 15, in the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the dream has finally come true. Gone are the harsh stings from skeptics who thought the USLS College of Medicine would crumble on its own. Gone are the cruel remarks of pessimism and disbelief. All are replaced with moments of joy, of relief, of excitement and of hope. The long struggle has been rewarded. Thus, all that we have been through do not matter anymore. All the mistakes, the failures and the soorows, all are gone, perhaps not entirely forgotten, but at least displaced by emotions of ecstasy. The story of Class 2006 is a happy-ending story.
But it is not over yet. The story continues. The committment persists. The passion to serve endures. The feeling of gratitude lingers perpetually. The solid faith, the belief in dreams, it shall sustain us in the next chapter of our lives. The tears we have shed, the energies that were drained from us, they all stand as testament to the faith we bear in our hearts. Now, the story of the Medical Education in the Province of Negros Occidental is the story of Class 2006. It is a story worth telling. It is a story worth sharing. It is a story worth emulating. It is a story that will never be forgotten. For it is a story of victory, of hope, of faith, a story that proves to all, that dreams do come true.
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