Breaking routine

Home to school, school to home — that was the routine. We weren’t allowed to go to a friend’s house for a visit (sleepovers were reserved only for academic purposes), or to a mall except for a really strong reason like having to buy something for school. We could go to a nearby store, to our aunt’s house, or to church. Otherwise, we weren’t allowed to go anywhere on our own.

Seventeen years: That’s how long I was in school. I’ve experienced how it is to be among the top in class, to get a failing grade and make up for it during summer, to cheat (or not) during exams, and to be late, whether in getting to school or returning home.

I’ve broken rules, gotten caught, and been reprimanded. Sometimes I got away with it, or got found out within days. I’ve experienced graduating with honors and receiving special awards.
I’ve mastered the art of cramming. I’ve destroyed my body clock by staying up late—studying, playing video games, reading books, or watching movies—and then waking up after a good midmorning nap to go to class. There were times when I would rather sleep than eat.

Throughout those years I met certain people who came into my life to teach a lesson, to test my character, or to be a blessing in disguise. Most of them helped me become the person that I currently am and want to be.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not perfect, nor am I trying to be. For all the lessons I learned about life and about myself, and those that were taught us in our classrooms, I can honestly say I know little.

Except for the ups and downs, the holidays and vacations, and some minor changes, I used to think that my life was boring. It was a monotonous routine: I went to school, learned lessons, met friends and classmates, went home, did what I had to do, went to bed (or not), and then went to school, etc. The cycle went on until I graduated.

Maybe that’s why I always tried to break the routine as much as I could. I craved adventure. I wanted to try something new from time to time. And although I was not brave enough, I wanted to explore the mysteries that life had to offer.

Being a student was both pain and joy. Some things are meant to be endured, some to be enjoyed.

Sweet success comes to those who know how to get up when failure comes, and how to wait, persevere and look on the bright side. I have failed, and I have failed a lot. Thankfully, I still managed to get up.

When I found a job, I realized that what I had experienced were preparations for my life outside the confines of school. Yes, there are now new routines and accumulated habits, but then any routine can be broken by perspective — that lovely act of looking at things from different angles. I realized that I have a choice—to be a victim of my circumstances or the heroine of my life journey.

The real test starts when we realize that there’s more to life. Yes, we’re young, and we owe it to our future self what our
current self should become. I’m alive and it’s fun to be alive, most especially in knowing that God is watching over me.

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Haizelyn N. Casimiro, 28, is a computer science graduate of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.