#24things

So in the last few months I have turned 24 and I have to say it was the most terrifying moment of my life. So for anyone else out there going through a similar age crisis, here are 24 everyday thoughts of a 24 year old.

Disclaimer: I am not looking for a girlfriend or a future partner “immediately” (agad agad!). I just want to use this opportunity (social media specifically fb) to inspire those youth out there to pursue their God-given dreams before anything else. I want them to know that they are valuable to God! That they should see the value in them.

So what’s the connection of this entry to the youth? Hehe! Well, I know that when it comes to “love” topics, youth are so interested.haha And so I chose to make this final entry as something “intriguing”. So fb friends, you can help me in reaching out those youth out there.  Maybe by tagging them? Or sharing the message to them? Whatever ways you have in mind, I’ll appreciate it as a birthday gift.☺

Hi Youth! (To all the youth out there!) This entry is for you! You are far greater than rubies and gold. You are valuable! Don’t settle for an early relationships that you know won’t last. Hey! You are not ready for that! Do you have work – a sustainable work? Are you emotionally ready? Do you really know what you want in life? Do you have a dream worth pursuing? If your answer is YES to all of them, then I would not stop you for entering any relationship with the opposite sex. I have heard lot of stories about early pregnancies, early marriages, abortion, pre-marital sex, addiction, etc. And I don’t want you to be part of those stories. That’s why I am giving you a warning before it’s too late. Don’t be drowned with the peer pressures! When something is done by majority or they agreed upon it, that something doesn’t necessarily means right. The rightness of a thing does not depend on majority.

All I want to say to youth is… Focus on your study, build yourself to be a better man/woman, serve your country by being a competitive student, read books (self-help, inspirational, leadership, helpful blogs), dream for yourself and for this country, make a step for a positive change, don’t post too much nonsense messages in fb, pray for your growth in every areas, have mentors (even authors can be your mentors thru reading their books), choose your friends well, be part of some youth organization that can help developing your skills, do something kind to your parents (washing the dishes will do), stop having textmates, take UPCAT and see that life is not that easy that you need to prepare yourself (this apply to 3rd year high schools and below.hehe). Finally visit and follow my fresh blogsite at transformedtobetransformer.tumblr.com

So that’s my introduction for this entry.haha I know this is what you are waiting for, so without further ado, these are the 24 things I am looking for future Mrs. Pagtananan. By the way, this is in random order:

Willing to embrace two-child policy.

Have the skills and abilities to co-author books with me.

Would convince me to like her selfie pictures.

Able to explain and expound what the verse John 3:16 means.

Must laugh (or should I say decipher) to at least five out of my ten jokes.

Can convince me to take extra rice because of her "sinigang."

Willing to acclimatize to my core values such as Pursuing God, Serving Passionately, Empowering People, Shaping Cultures and Expecting Miracles.

Have a healthy heart which is not prone to heart attack when I give surprises.

Find it sweet when sometimes I'll be treating her to a safe street food outlet, riding pedicab, jogging together, and the likes.

Willing to coordinate family reunions and gatherings.

When she goes out from the mall's dressing room, I would be able to say either "nice!", "cute!" or "awesome!"

Believe that she has a great destiny ahead, a greater destiny with me and a greatest destiny with God.

Absolutely huggable, pillowable and pinchable.

Can beat me in scrabbles and word factory (FYI: I'm not good at those).

My birthday is one of the important dates that she will remember and prioritize.

If I have three "ambigrams", she must recognize all three (coz it's for her!).

She’ll find ways to spend not just time but quality time with me.

Have an idea on how to turn Php 100 into PhP 110 in a month or less.

Know what is an undignified and extravagant worship and living it.

Have the knowledge about RA 10627 and know that I am an exemption to the RA.

Willing to stay overnight with me watching series such as Hunter X Hunter, Detective Conan, Prince of Tennis, Once Upon a Time, and the likes.

Know the deeper meaning of leadership, discipleship and shepherdship.

Would love to travel and stay with me to other countries for a vacation and for a greater purpose. 

It was 2nd year college when I first learned how to have disciples/follow-ups. Yes, people come and go but all the learnings that I gained as I oversee those people are a great experience. It was 3rd year college when I had my first official LIFE group - Desiderio and Jaime. Later on, Larry became part of it, then he invited Carl.hehe Then Marcial was added to the group. I think that five men started my first LG. Later on, I opened LG at the Forestry and I asked Carl to lead that when the group was already stable. Jaime had his own LG too (I think more than I had during that time.haha) We had lots of people who had attended the group (not to mention all of their names) but they have their own personal reasons of not coming back (hectic schedule, love life, organizations, fraternity, too academically focused, etc.). There were also some people who became part of my LIFE group temporarily.hehe Thanks for all! Indeed I became more mature as a leader because of those people.

Currently, I have this amazing LIFE group. Some are students and some are young professionals.hehe We usually meet every Saturday evening. Dan, Gid, DJ, Marc, Thom, Earl, and Emman. Those are the amazing names of my LG members. We love adventures. We love eating.haha We love God (of course!). We are world changers!(Amen!)

I know there are lots of memories to be created with these people! I treasured them indeed. May each one of us become that man that God want us to be. Continue to grow in the Lord! Keep seeking His presence. Inspire others. God bless mighty men!

Special thanks to the one who taught me how to lead people, my discipler (LG leader) – Kuya Wilbert.☺

If Meteor Garden has Dao Ming Si, Hua Ze Lei, Xi Men, and Mei Zuo… SOD Batch 06 has Billy, Dane, Dean and Joseph. I think we complete the four temperaments.haha

I would just like to acknowledge those mighty men who were with me during my leadership in our organization at our college days. I’m proud to say that we are all raised up as leaders. We are the rare and endangered ones.haha Guys! I’m proud of you all! Wherever Destiny you are right now, be a blessing! This poem by Ted Engstrom is for you guys and to all men in the world:

The world needs men who cannot be bought;

whose word is their bond;

who put character above wealth;

who possess opinions and a will;

who are larger than their vocations;

who do not hesitate to take chances;

who will not lose their individuality in a crowd;

who will be as honest in small things as in great things;

who will make no compromise with wrong;

whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires;

who will not say they do it “because everybody else does it”;

who are true to their friends through good report and evil report, in adversity as well as in prosperity;

who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning, and hardheadedness are the best qualities for winning success;

who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth when it is unpopular;

Yes. I want to create a positive change. I want to create a movement that can be catalysis of change. Through a single person that you will influence or share a vision with, it can create a ripple effect. This movement can create a culture.

I tried a “blessing movement” entitled “Blessed Generation Blessing Generations”. I did it when I was undergraduate student through my student organization – Students of Destiny. Well, for a couple of days, 26 people were blessed! 26 people became part of the movement! 26 people created a culture! The first person in the list is the person I blessed with a chocolate – toblerone.hehe I just gave her a note of encouragement. My instruction with her is that no one must know who is the mastermind of this.hehe Due to some reason (If I remember it right, it was summer vacation),  I asked my contact person to stop passing the paper.hehe But it was good to know that there are people (a lot of people) whom you can bless. Actually, I don’t know the stories of those people listed here.hehe I don’t know what kind of blessing they received and they gave. But I tagged some of them since they are my fb friends. ☺

Let me share you what is it all about.

Instructions:

If you received this, make sure you signed your name at the table below and passed it to other people and so on and so forth until the last person. Make sure you bless the other person whom you are going to give this. You can bless him or her through some gifts, notes, chocolates, money, words of encouragement, words of wisdom, prayer, etc. (just ask the Holy Spirit in what way the person will be blessed through you!) Make sure you passed it to the other person within 3 days or less.☺

Barkada 23. That’s our name. It was “founded” when we were 3rd year high school. The first to be part of this Barkada 23 are: Aljon, Dexter, Cristen and me. Yes, the four of us. We are from different sections but we became bonded because we are officers of CAT (Cadet Advance Training). It’s like the ROTC in college. Then later on, we expand.hehe Jehrus, Jonas, LJ, Rupert, RJ became part of the circle.

By the way, I would like to mention that Barkada 23 was established because of Barkada 22.hehe They are composed of our senior officers in CAT – all girls. But we are not the counterpart Barkada 22. Just to have a name.haha

Anyways, we had the recent reunion last holy week. I am rejoicing with them as they are pursuing their own work and businesses. But I am super rejoicing because they have their own girlfriend! Though I am single, I do not feel envy because I am enjoying singleness.☺ It’s great to see the wonderful love of their lives and hopefully their future partner. We had a great time together.

I would like to congratulate Dexter for taking the step towards having a married and family life.☺ I’ve seen the change and transformation on how you act and think because you found your “Eve”. See you at the your wedding on June 28, 2014! I am proud of you bro!

Who’s next line?hehe

Have you heard the four types of temperament?

The following is an overview description of the four primary temperaments (John T. Cocoris, Th.M., Psy.D):

The Choleric is an extroverted, hot-tempered, quick thinking, active, practical, strong-willed and easily annoyed person. Cholerics are self-confident, self-sufficient and very independent minded. They are decisive and opinionated and find it easy to make decisions for themselves as well as others. Cholerics tend to leave little room for negotiating. The Choleric is a visionary and seems to never run out of ideas, plans and goals, which are usually very practical.

The Sanguine is an extroverted, fun-loving, activity-prone, impulsive, entertaining, persuasive, easily amused and optimistic person. Sanguines are receptive and open to others and build relationships quickly. They are animated, excited and accepting of others. They will smile and talk easily and often. It is not unusual to feel as if you have known the Sanguine person  for years after only a few minutes. Sanguines are so people-oriented that they easily forget about time and are often late arriving at their destination. Sanguines get bored easily because of their orientation to social involvement, activity and general dislike for solitude. The Sanguine never lacks for friends. Their attention span is based on whether or not they are interested in the person or event.

The Phlegmatic is an introverted, calm, unemotional, easygoing, never-get-upset, person. Phlegmatics are both slow and indirect when responding to others. They are also slow to warm-up but will be accommodating in the process. Phlegmatics are by far the easiest person with which to get along. They live a quiet, routine, life, free of the normal anxieties and stresses of the other temperaments. The Phlegmatic will avoid getting too involved with people and life in general. Phlegmatics seldom exert themselves with others or push their way along in their career, they just let it happen. The Phlegmatic communicates a warm, sincere interest in others preferring to have just a few close friends. They will  be very loyal to their friends and find it difficult to break long standing relationships regardless of what the other person does.

The Melancholy is an introverted, logical, analytical, factual, private, lets-do-it-right person. Melancholies respond to others in a slow, cautious and indirect manner. Melancholies are reserved and suspicious until sure of your intentions. The Melancholy probe for the "hidden meaning" behind your words. They are timid and may appear unsure and have a serious expression. They are self-sacrificing, gifted and they tend to be a perfectionist. Melancholies are very sensitive to what others think about their work. The Melancholy is well organized; on occasion you may find a Melancholy that keeps things cluttered, however, they know what’s in the piles. The Melancholy is determined to make the right and best decision. Melancholies will ask specific questions and sometimes they will ask the same question again and again.

Aside from being a chemical engineer, I now have a desire to be an environmentalist. Well, my current work as a Pollution Control Officer makes me more concern about the environment.☺

Actually, when I first applied at UPLB Graduate School, I applied for MS Chemical Engineering and I was accepted. However, I deferred for one semester since I am waiting for my permanency at work. When you are UPLB employee, you have the privilege to enjoy part time study for free, maximum of 6 units per semester. When you exceed 6 units, you will be the one to pay for the excess units. To cut the long story short, when the second semester starts, I decided to change my major from MS Chemical Engineering to MS Environmental Science. I just paid PhP 500 for the ‘change of major application fee’. I have my own reasons.☺ I just felt peace in my heart when I applied for change of major. It was approved.

So far, I enjoyed being MS Envi Sci student. I love the exams!haha Well, when I was undergraduate, our exams are more on calculations. We can have 10-15 pages pure calculations. But in MS, 10 pages pure essay – explanations, etc. After the exam, I’ll find my hands aching.hehe

What I love in Envi Sci is the diversity of courses and nationalities. I have classmates who are Foresters, Agriculturists, Biologists, Anthropologists, Engineers, Communication Majors, Economists, etc. Some of my classmates are from Liberia, Indonesia, Myanmar, China, Thailand and many more to come.☺