“If you believe, say ‘Yes, I Can!’ ” (apl.de.ap, 2011)

by Carmelita Cochingco Ballesteros.
June 1, 2013
How can you work 21 hours a day, seven days a week? Convenience stores have three shifts of employees. No problem. What if you have only one team to do the work? Big problem. And the road ahead is muddy? And the system breaks down because of weak links? And you’re losing your focus, your strength, and your will? Huge, insurmountable problem! Wait a minute, apl.de.ap of Black-Eyed Peas says, “If you believe, say ‘Yes, I can!’ ”
Last week, May 20-26, had been a test of will power and faith for my family and me as we worked without let-up and with very little sleep from Monday to Sunday. Happily, we won the battles because we kept on believing…
On Monday, May 20, everything seemed to go wrong when my pupils in Children’s Speech and Drama, ages 6-9, had their last and technical rehearsal for their speech showcase on Wednesday, May 22. We were at Adelaido A. Bayot Memorial School, Inc., host school of my Summer 2013 classes in Nasugbu, Batangas.
One boy was absent. Another boy who had gone with his family on a long vacation had not mastered his lines. One girl whispered her lines, then said she was too tired to practice. Another girl refused to sing her intermission number. The school’s sound system broke down and nobody knew how to repair it. I felt like calling off the speech showcase. But I didn’t. I said a little prayer.
In the afternoon of the same day, it was my high school students’ turn to have their last and technical rehearsal for their speech showcase on Wednesday, May 22. I couldn’t believe it, but one boy was absent. One girl who had been absent twice kept tripping on her tongue. One boy kept teasing his classmates as they rehearsed. They’d burst into hysterical laughter which made me feel like crying. I felt like calling off the speech showcase. But I didn’t. I said a little prayer.
On Tuesday, May 21, somebody knocked on my classroom door at 8:15 a.m. He introduced himself as the son of the school’s Vice-president for Finance. He said his mother had asked him to bring over his personal sound system so that my students could use it the following day. It was incredible!
In the afternoon, two speech students who seemed unprepared for the showcase showed up to rehearse one more time. They stayed for two hours and rehearsed patiently, tirelessly. It was incredible!
On Wednesday, May 22, the little ones held their speech showcase in the morning. There were bloopers, but all in all, the kids gave their best. Their finale number was apl.de.ap’s “We Can Be Anything.” It was a proud moment, as shown in their picture below.
On Wednesday afternoon, the high school students had their own speech showcase. Their repertoire included challenging pieces such as “What Teachers Make” by Taylor Mali, “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou, “Gettysburg Address” by Abraham Lincoln, “Casey at the Bat” by Edwin Lawrence Thayer, “Cinderella” by Roald Dahl, “A Glass of Cold Water” (anonymous), and “Little Red Riding Hood”, a jazz chant number written by Carolyn Graham.
Everyone stood up and delivered brilliantly. It was incredible!
There’s a mysterious force created by the presence of an empathetic audience which draws out the best in the most unlikely speaker and performer.
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On Thursday, May 24, I bid Nasugbu, Batangas goodbye and went back to the Faithful Shepherd’s Garden in Mendez, Cavite. I thought I would be savoring the small success achieved by my speech students. But EZ Event Management Services, my son and daughter-in-law’s event business, was immersed in preparations for a live TV coverage of the “Marvelous May Festival,” an event it conceptualized and was managing for Magallanes Square Hotel in Tagaytay City.
I became an instant ghost scriptwriter and researcher for last-minute adjustments in the production of the Tagaytay segment on “Umagang Kay Ganda,” a daily morning show of ABS-CBN, which was going to air footages as well as live interviews on Friday, May 25.
The preparations took the whole day until 12 midnight. My son, daughter-in-law, and the crew of EZ Event took a nap, then got up at 3:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24, to make sure that everything and everyone was ready for the 5:00 a.m. shoot and airing of “Umagang Kay Ganda.” Needless to say, the coverage was
successful but everyone involved was sleep-deprived and exhausted.
So, did we rest on Friday afternoon? No, we started moving furniture and preparing the Faithful Shepherd’s Garden (FSG) for the anniversary dinner of the Philippine Navy Retirees Association of Mendez the following day.
Early on Saturday morning, my son and daughter-in-law went to Manila to do some urgent shopping. We continued with the preparations such as trimming shrubs and sprucing up the pocket gardens.
We had no lunch so my 12-year old grandson whipped up spaghetti with corned beef, a no-no if his Mom were around. But we were very hungry and needed to eat in a jiffy! So we broke the rule against processed food. It was incredibly delicious!
As scheduled, the videoke equipment was delivered and the caterer arrived. And, of course, the navy retirees and their guests marched in. As they ate and sang, I wrote the program script for the first Flower Topiary Arrangement Contest in Tagaytay City. Deadline for the script? Two days ago!
On Sunday, May 26, we got up at dawn so we could be at Magallanes Square Hotel at 6:00 a.m. It was the venue of the first Flower Topiary Arrangement Contest in Tagaytay City. The topiary contest was part of the Marvelous May Festival.
Two contest judges had not confirmed their attendance so I was going to be a spare judge. Surprisingly, all four of them came. Suddenly, I was told to be the emcee since I had written the program script.
Thirteen contestants showed up and after the time limit of one hour, messy-looking cut flowers and leaves became transformed into works of art. When the verdict of the Board of Judges was announced, the audience gave its approval with a cheerful applause.
The winners were Bhem Meijer, first prize (Php10,000.00 and a trophy); Normelino Aviñante, second prize (Php5,000.00 and a trophy); and Shirley Bebis, third prize (Php3,000.00 and a trophy). Five consolation prizes were given.
Here are the winning flower topiaries:
* * *
Last week, May 20-26, 2013 has been an exciting, but extremely challenging week for my family and me. How could one small team work 21 hours a day for seven straight days! I was in panic mode, and I was tempted to give up. But I didn’t; we didn’t. We proved to ourselves that if we believe and engage in positive self-talk – Yes, we can! – apparently insurmountable problems can be won. Prayers work!