grade 11 project

                                            Introspection

                                                Acceptance

            “It is only through the heart that one can see rightly.” -The Little Prince

Loyalty

• Economy

The Philippines is considered as the “Rising Tiger of Asia.” This name was given to us due to the potential and the recent improvements regarding our economy. The Philippines has one of the most dynamic economies in the Southeast Asian region. With increasing urbanization, a growing population of the middle class, and a large and young population, the Philippines' economic diversity is rooted in strong consumer demand supported by a vibrant labor market and robust remittances. Here are some interesting facts about Philippine economy:

1.       The Philippines ranks fourth in developing human capital. Compared to the other countries in the region, the Philippines ranked fourth in terms of human capital with a score of 64.36, according to the World Economic Forum's Global Human Capital Index report 2017. Singapore ranked highest with a score of 73.28 while Cambodia, who scored the lowest, got a score of 57.28

2.       The Philippines is the third-largest economy in ASEAN based on GDP. Indonesia's gross domestic product totaled $932 billion in 2016 while Thailand placed second at $406 billion, World Bank reported. This was followed by the Philippines, Singapore, and Malaysia at $304 billion, $297 billion and $296 billion, respectively. Brunei has the smallest economy based on GDP at $11 billion.

3.       The Philippines ranked 56th out of 149 countries in the latest Global Competitiveness Report; while also ranking the 5th most competitive economy in Southeast Asia.

• Education

The Philippines still has a long way to go in terms of providing quality education, but fortunately, our country has shown improvement over the years. According to Philstar.com in their article, “In charts: How the Philippines fares in Southeast Asia, November 2017,” it revealed that the Philippines ranks 4th in developing human capital. Compared to other countries in the region, the Philippines ranked fourth in terms of human capital with a score of 64.36, according to the World Economic Forum's Global Human Capital Index report 2017. WEF's report defines "human capital" as the knowledge and skills people possess that enable them to create value in the global economic system. It ranks economies on how well they are developing their human capital across four thematic sub-indices: capacity; deployment; development; and know-how. The Philippines, along with Malaysia, are only the two countries that have improved investment in education as a percent of GDP.  But despite the improvements, we still have a long way to go. Arturo Bris,  the IMP World Competitiveness Center’s director revealed that in the media. “However, in 2018, The Philippines witnessed a deterioration of its ability to provide the economy with the skills needed, which points to a mismatch between school curriculums and the demands of companies,” he said. The Philippines progressed in terms of accessibility, but it still has a long way to go when it comes to the delivery of quality learning for the success of every learner.

• Quality of life

A Letter To My Dead Father

“I closed my eyes, tried to quiet the rest of the world. I took a deep breath. I saw your smile. The gap in between your two front teeth, just like mine. The reason I won’t allow the cosmetic surgeon to touch it. This imperfection my smile that reminds me of you. But I couldn’t hear your laugh. No matter how hard I tried. I couldn’t hear it, Dad. I tried, I really did. I feel like it’snot so much so to ask that I just hear it once more.

 Without your love, I would die

One day a boy and a girl were driving home after watching a movie. The boy sensed there was something wrong because of the painful silence they shared between them that night. The girl then asked the boy to pull over because she wanted to talk. She told him that her feelings had changed and that it was time to move on. A silent tear slid down his cheek as he slowly reached out to his pocket and passed her a folded note.

At the moment, a drunk driver was speeding down that very same street. He severed right into the car killing the boy. Miraculously, the girl survived. Remembering the note later, she unfolded it and read.

   The kiss

               Autobiography of Eldwin John Del Monte

                  Autobiography of Jean Coleen Noblejas

On the sixth of September on the year of 2001, the daughter of Raymund Gerard Noblejas and Gladys de Leon-Noblejas, or I was born. According to my mother I was quite big for a baby, but as I reached the stage of my early childhood I started to become thin.

           I remember spending five years of my early childhood bouncing back and forth between my mom’s house and my dad’s house. Although my parents were married before they had me, they faced numerous problems and decided that it would be best if they separate. I was two years old then, meaning I had gotten used to the system our family had, during the weekdays I would say with my mom, while on the weekends I would be with my dad. Despite having grown accustomed to my family’s untraditional circumstances, every night I would pray for my parents to get back together, so we could live “happily ever after”. I would no longer have to spend Christmas Eve with my mom, then Christmas Day with my dad, we could finally celebrate every birthday and holiday together, as a family. I also prayed to the Lord for a younger brother. I was very envious of my cousins who had siblings. I often that they were so lucky to have someone to play with and take care of. And, of course, along with the request for a baby brother, I also prayed for a puppy!

           After five years of earnestly asking, my prayers have been answered. Just before I turned eight, my parents decided to get back together and we then moved into our own rented apartment, and we adopted the most affectionate little puppy. Soon after I turned nine years old, I was blessed to have the most adorable younger brother. Life started to seem like it was going great for me, I had gotten everything I longed for, but of course, life tends to rain on our parade. My family started to have financial problems, and my father’s lack of a job did not help the situation at all. To add to the problems his heart problems seemed to worsen, every single problem started to take a toll on our family. Despite the large problems my family encountered those years, we were able to overcome them. My dad was finally able to land a job that had somewhat of high pay. My parents were finally able to pay for the bills and rent on time, pay for my tuition, and pay off some of our debts. Everything started to look up until something unexpected happened. My dad had a heart attack one evening, and before he could even make it to the hospital he died. It was a very sad and heavy time for our family, but despite everything, despite losing her husband and becoming a single mother, my mom remained strong. She quickly took the role of both our father and our mother. After my father’s funeral, we moved back into my grandmother’s house, and life continued as normal, just without my dad.

           Soon came my High School years, and it was nothing like I had imagined or expected. I thought it was going to be just like the movies where everyone was just laid back and having fun, how mistaken I was. Just as I had stepped into High School, I can say it was nothing like the movies. To say that “’ High School Musical’ is a scam” would be quite true. It was all so very pressuring, demanding, and stressful, something I wasn’t very used to, especially in the school I grew up in. Although, despite it being exhausting, High School has been one of the most enjoyable and memorable times of my life. It is in this part of my life that I had developed friendships that I hope will last a lifetime. It is here where I am starting to venture out into the unknown and journey into the path of self-discovery.

• Capitalism

This is the leading cause as to why people sacrifice nature for money.  Take Amazon rainforest fires for example. It was reported to be caused by farmers and loggers clearing land for growing crops, livestock, and for grazing. If it weren’t for Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro’s (who was also criticized for his negligence regarding environmental policies) 60-day ban on setting fires for clearing land for different purposes, nothing in the Amazon would have been left. Capitalism can also be seen in the Cerrado Savanna. The WWF calls it “one of the most endangered ecosystems on the planet.” This place has been reported to be the place where the problem regarding the Amazon has moved.  “When society was looking at the Amazon, they were thinking [in the Cerrado], it’s OK, we can do whatever we want here,” Ane Alencar says (BBC, Hughes, 2019). Half of the total area have already been lost much of it to make way for soybean farming. Some of UK’s largest fast-food chains have been selling meat from animals fed on soybeans linked to Brazil’s forest fires. 2.5 million tons of soy is imported into the United Kingdom annually, with a large proportion used to as food for farm animals. This soy import came from the Amazonian land that farmers burned to grow this plant and of course, earn money. With this, we can see how money can change a person.  

The Rational Choice Theory is a theory is a great way for us to understand why farmers prioritize money over nature.  Since farmers need money, they do not care who and what will suffer as long as they get their money. This is also what happened in the Philippines last January 13-14, 2020 when the Taal Volcano erupted and the demand for N95 mask rose unexpectedly.  There had been reports that sellers priced the masks from Php 30 to Php 200. In this situation, we can see how people prioritize money over the common good.

• Deforestation

This is another great reason why our present environment is at stake. If we humans did not exploit our trees, then we could have more trees that could absorb carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere, help prevent flooding in the urban areas, and help prevent landfalls from occurring.  We cut down trees for multiple reasons, which are, unfortunately one-sided and only benefit the minority.

This issue can be connected to the Human-Environment System Approach. Our actions, such as the burning of coal, releasing of heavy metals into rivers, and clearing of forests, cause detrimental environmental change, which in hind sight affect humans as well. We, humans, should be more conscious of our actions and how they can impact the environment and the people, animals, and other living things around us. If we fail to be more considerate and conscious, we will fall victim to our own selfishness and greed.

• Negligence of the government

The negligence of our government is also a leading cause as to why our environment is suffering. Yes, they pass laws that must be followed, but they lack reinforcement and proper implementation. But reinforcement and weak implementation is not only the problem.  The government also chooses to turn a blind eye towards environmental issues, for they are too focused on improving the economy. They only care about the environment whenever there is a disaster and people need help.

                                                 Dear Annie

November 6, 2017

Dear Annie,

           I’m sorry I wasn’t able to visit you at the hospital today. School really has a way of keeping you busy at the worst times, I guess. The head office all of a sudden announced that they wanted some of the high school students to stay around till 6pm just to help with the decorations for the upcoming school play, surprisingly I was one of them. Yaay! (note the sarcasm) I honestly think they aren’t really thinking things through, they should’ve told us in advance, and should have at least lessened the homework for today. The worst thing about it is that we didn’t even do anything! Majority of us just sat there staring into nothing, while the student council, drama club, visual arts club, and the teachers discussed/argued (well the arguing went between the students of the clubs and the student council) about the appropriate designs and props for each scene. If you were there you probably would’ve gotten us out, but unfortunately for me I’m not as sneaky as you are. So I just stayed for 2 hours. It really was a waste of time, I wished they just planned this before-hand, before demanding that we stay in the auditorium to help with props and designs that haven’t even been planned yet! Ugh, seriously this is such a bad day. I was low-key regretting not listening to you when you taught me how to sneak out of school during after class practices, but of course knowing me I’m too scared to do things on my own. I guess this is a sickness of mine, relying on you too much.

           A funny thing happened on my walk home though. I passed the bakery where we always hung out in, and ordered some hot chocolate. The owner saw that I was alone, and asked where you were. I told her that you were sick and couldn’t make it to school. Then she gave me the hot chocolate, she handed me a bag of cookies and told me it was on the house, and for me to give to you as a ‘get well soon’ gift. The funny thing about it was that she referred to you as my “partner-in-crime” when in reality I’m kind off just your assistant. I don’t mind though, I don’t like doing too much work anyway. I guess I’ll just try to drop this letter off tomorrow when I come visit you, hopefully the head office won’t make us stay till 6pm again.

                                                                                                                                   -Mark

P.S.

I’m sorry, I ate the cookies.

 November 10, 2017

Dear Annie

           Remember what you told me 3 years ago? You told me it was around midnight and you went to down stairs to get a glass of water, but you were greeted with the sight of your mother crying. You said you dreaded the sight, that it was the most heart breaking thing you have ever seen. At first, I couldn’t really get why you felt so bad, I mean everyone cries, it’s only normal for your mom to cry too. I guess at the time I couldn’t really relate since I didn’t have a mother of my own, but when I visited you at the hospital today, I can finally say that I see what you mean. I told your mom that I wasn’t going to be able to visit you today since I thought the school was going to make us stay till 6pm again, but turns out they didn’t so I went to visit you while totally forgetting to tell your mom about it.

           When I got to your room and opened the door, I was greeted with the same sight you saw that night 3 years ago. Your mom was sitting on a chair beside your bed, holding your hand, crying while begging you to wake up. It really was heart breaking to see. It was heart breaking because the woman I saw nearly everyday, who was always so strong, always put on a smile, faced her problems head on, had been putting on a mask to cover her genuine sadness. I’m not an idiot to not realize that she’s obviously really sad about this, and it’s only normal that she’s crying, but this really was my first time seeing her cry. What was even more heart breaking was when she saw me enter, she let go of your hand, dried her tears and once again put on a smile. She even got up from her seat just to hug me. That’s when I started crying, for you and for your mom. If you were awake you probably would’ve teased me about how ugly I looked when I cried. I used to hate it whenever you did that, but now I would really give anything just for little moments like that.

                                                                                                                  -Mark  

 November 13, 2017

Dear Annie,

            So the school made the whole high school department stay after class again for an announcement. You could clearly hear the groans and complaints from all the other students, I honestly didn’t want to stay either, but I guessed it was just for an announcement, at least they weren’t making us stay till the sun finally set. So the drama club wanted to announce this year’s school play. To everyone’s surprise it was the Wizard of Oz. They also announced that they will post forms for those who want to audition for what characters they want, and that they would post the date for the auditions on the bulletin board as well. When we were finally dismissed, the drama club president approached me and told me to tell you about the play since she was really rooting for you to play as the Good Witch of the North, she even gave me the sample script for you to memorize. I nearly scoffed since that type of character doesn’t really seem to fit you. I’m thinking you would make a great Wicked Witch of the West. I wonder how you would look like with green skin. Hurry up and wake up already, I really wanna see you play.

                                                                                                                -Mark

November 27, 2017

Dear Annie,

           Your dad came to visit you today. Let’s just say the visit was quite a surprise to both your mom and I, and let’s just say your mom wasn’t really happy about your dad visiting you nearly 4 weeks after your accident. She asked what took him so long to get here, and he replied with the most revolting answer, “I was busy with work, I had hundreds of paper work to file”. Honestly if I only had the courage to talk back to you dad I would’ve, but unfortunately I don’t, and your mom already beat me to it. She told him, “This is so like you, you’re so selfish and all you care about it work. Your daughter is on a hospital bed fighting for her life, and all you can think about is all the paper work you have to file”. I really wanted to laugh at that time because it reminded me of that time  when we were in the 8th grade and it was your first time acting in a play, you were the main character too, you told your dad about it, but in the end he didn’t even sit on the seat that you reserved for him. Then when the play was over, I went backstage to come get you, but then I saw you crying and you told me that your dad was so selfish, that he knew how important this was to you, yet he couldn’t even make time for you and that all he could think about is work. Obviously both situations weren’t a laughing matter, I just found it funny how similar you are to your mom, and how you would probably say the same if you saw him, and if you were conscious. Although you most likely wouldn’t actually say that to your dad, I guess that what you and I have in common as well.

                                                                                                                                  -Mark

 December 3, 2017

Dear Annie,

           It’s has been officially a whole month since your accident. Rereading the first sentence makes it look like I’m so enthusiastic about it. Please wake up, I’m really lonely in school nowadays. Although I have Eric to hang out with, but it’s really not the same. I mean we are good friends, but he’s just not you. I’m not trying to have Eric as your replacement while you’re gone, it’s just that I can’t seem to find anyone who understands and relates to me like you do. I don’t know if this is a sign that I’m that much of a difficult human being, if that is the case then I’m sorry for giving you a hard time, or I really should’ve listened to you and actually socialized with other people. Ugh wake up already, it’s almost Christmas, and knowing how lazy you are, you probably haven’t even bought me anything and I also planned something for you, so you better wake up before Christmas. I’m kidding, but seriously though everyone misses you. I miss you.

                                                                                                                                    -Mark

 December 15, 2017

Dear Annie,

           So today was the auditions for the school play, and I approached the president of the drama club. I was about to tell her that you couldn’t make it to the auditions, but then she told me that she knows and that she wishes you a fast recovery, then left to go inside the auditorium. Dumbfounded wasn’t even close to how I was feeling after that. Although I don’t really know why I’m so surprised about the school knowing about what happened to you when it’s only normal for this kind of stuff to travel around. I don’t really know anyone, other than me, Eric, and some of the teachers, who knows about what happened to you. It’s not like Eric and I have any other friends in school to tell this to. So maybe the teachers were probably talking about it, and some of the students overheard. It’s just a theory. Why am I so upset about this? It’s not like I could’ve done anything from the news from spreading, nor was I the one who told anyone about it. Other than that happening, I lost my last remaining pencil, spilled my juice on my uniform, and lost my homework. Quite a nice day don’t you think so? Ugh it really is a Monday, but at least Christmas vacation starts on Wednesday this week.

                                                                                                                                  -Mark

December 25, 2017

Dear Annie,

           Merry Christmas weirdo! I spent the nearly whole day at your house, since I volunteered to help your mom cook dinner. After stopping by to visit you in the hospital, your mom, dad, and I went to the grocery that afternoon buy some stuff that was needed for dinner. When we got back to your house, I was expecting your dad to just be sitting by the dining area while doing some work, but to my surprise (and your mom’s too) he didn’t. Your dad asked if he could help prepare dinner and your mom gave him certain tasks to do and such. It really felt like we were a family preparing our own Christmas dinner, your mom started telling your dad about things he’s missed out on, and your dad would crack some jokes here and there, he asked how my aunt and I was doing. Then after cooking dinner, I was about to bid your parents goodbye, but they asked me to stay for dinner since no one was really home since Aunt Lucy went on vacation. I had a really great time, although I feel bad since you should’ve been the one who was there, not me, it feels like I’m stealing something of yours, like I’m stealing the opportunity for you to see your family happy and complete. I really wish you were there to witness it and be able to experience it, it was everything you told me you wanted. Well, I guess I don’t have a gift from you this year, nor can I continue on with the plans I made, I’m so disappointed. Just kidding, gifts aren’t really that important and my “plans” could always be moved on some other day. I really just want you to wake up. Merry Christmas, Annie.

                                                                                                                                -Mark

 January 1, 2018

Dear Annie,

           Happy New Year! Dude, now I see why you’re so annoyed with all these posts about, “It’s the New Year already, but why haven’t you changed yet?” I do agree these posts are really irritating, seriously what makes a person think that just because it’s a brand new year other people are automatically going to change? Just let theperson change when they’re ready. New Year celebrations are really overrated, it’s literally just another year, it’s just that that the calendar is different, and everyone is going to get a year older again. Same with birthdays too. I remember we would always be so excited about Christmas, our birthdays, New Year’s, but as we got older things changed, those celebrations aren’t as exciting as they used to be, oh well that’s growing up for you (as what my aunt would always say).

           Awhile ago your mom asked me why I kept writing you letters, I guess she was weirded out by me, I mean I have to admit it is a little though. None the less I told her that it was a way to keep you updated about what went one while you were asleep, like whenever you wouldn’t be able to make it to school, I would tell you what happened and the homework that needs to be done. Your mom was touched that I took the time out of my day to write you, I told her that it wasn’t a bother. I am your best friend after all.

                                                                                                                                 - Mark

P.S.

Speaking of homework, you have a lot to catch up on.

 January 12, 2018

Dear Annie,

               A miracle has come upon us! I finally found your hair tie that you’ve been looking for. Turns out it was in the medicine cabinet in my bathroom. I’m not sure how that got there, but I’ll just leave it there. When you read this one make sure to remind me to give it back to you. Oh, and I also found your missing pen inside one of the drawers on my bedside table. We’ve been over each other’s houses for so many times, I wouldn’t be surprised my missing pencil was probably at your house.

             I miss having you over, I miss hanging out with you, I miss teasing you, I miss going out to that bakery we pass by after school, I miss talking to you, I miss hearing your laugh. God, I miss everything about you, Annie. Please just wake up so everything just goes back to normal. I really have something to tell you, but it’s something I just don’t feel comfortable writing on paper.

                                                                                                                                  -Mark        

 January 31, 2018

Dear Annie,

             I always knew the world was unfair, I just didn’t know it was this much of a cheat. It was unfair to everyone, to me, to your parents, to your other friends, and especially to you. Why does it have to be this way? This wasn’t meant to happen, none of this was meant to happen. Your accident, you falling into coma, none of that was supposed to happen, and now.. I can’t even bring it up, it just makes everything feel worse. I feel sick to my stomach, I feel like I’m having nightmare that just feels too realistic. Please tell me this it is a dream, please tell me when I wake up, you’ll be there sitting on the couch watching “Beauty and the Beast” for the hundredth time already. Please Annie, wake me up from this horrible nightmare. I can’t take this. I miss you so much, but I guess missing you it the only thing I can ever do. I can only miss hanging out with you, I can only miss talking to you, I can only miss seeing you.

            There are so many things I wish I could’ve told you. I wish I told you how ridiculous you look when to do the chicken dance. I wish I told you how much you sucked at video games. I wish I told you that when you laugh you sound like you’re about to have an asthma attack. I wish I told you that your smile is the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen. I wish I told you that every time I saw you cry it would break my heart into a hundred pieces. I wish I told you that even if you sound like a seal, hearing you sing could make my entire day. I wish I told you that seeing you happy was the best thing in the world. I wish I told you how much I love you.

           Surprising, huh? Probably not. I’ve had a crush on you since we were in the 3rd grade. I thought it was just a feeling that would come and go, but it wasn’t. As the years passed, the crush I’ve had for you never went away like I’d hoped, but it did the complete opposite. For the past 9 years, I’ve only fallen deeper in love with you. I fell in love with the way you belted out all of your favourite songs, I fell in love with your weird personality, I fell in love with the sound of your laugh, the way you scrunch your nose in the slightest bit whenever you smile. I fell in love with you, Annie. I was supposed to tell you last Christmas, but I wasn’t able to because of what happened. I’m sorry, I know I told you that I didn’t want to write whatever I had to say in paper, but now this really is the only way to confess to you.

           This is going to be my last letter. I wrote these letters for you to read when you wake up, but there’s really no need for that anymore. I miss you. So I guess I should end this letter now.

Good bye, Annie. I love you to be moon and back.

                                                                                                                                   -Mark

P.S.