I was born in Brgy. Diome, Maria Aurora, Aurora in the 17th day of September 1991. My father, Reynaldo G. Castillo and my mother, Laurena M. Castillo raised me and my sister, Jhoana Marie M. Castillo with love, care, and affection. We have only four members in the family and I am the youngest in two siblings. Before, our family was considered to be one of the rich families in our Brgy. So it means that I am raised in the family that was not lacking of any necessity in life. Since I am the youngest daughter, many are expected me as a spoiled brat and a lazy one but I declared it wasn’t true. Even though we have the ability to get any servant, my mother didn’t attempt to get assistant in doing any household chores. She teaches us to wash plates, wash our clothes, cook, clean the house, and many more. I remembered before that I and my sister has a schedule in washing plates and cooking rice. It was very exciting at first but as the days go on, it doesn’t entertain me at all but I come to see that it can make me feel tired. Before, I really don’t understand the fact my mother teaches us not to dependent on what we have and what we are my principle before is that, what is the essence of money if you will not use it, you don’t need to work for simple things if you can manipulate your surroundings with the money that you have. Still, this principle didn’t consider by my mother and these make me get tantrum with them every time I reached my turn in the scheduled task.
During my elementary days, I remembered that my mother gave us only fifty pesos as our allowance within a week and if this amount was being consumed early, she will not give us additional allowance. This exercise teaches us to become thrifty and these do more towards budgeting aspects. Since the price of money before was high unlike now, fifty pesos seems enough or even much within the week and also compared to the allowance of other children like me. I believe, I am very blessed for having that kind of status in life so to it that I overlooked those blessings. I dominant my classmates before through commanding them to do that and do this with a reward. I also discriminate my classmates before towards friendship since another principle of mine is that, if you’re not rich like me, you’re not my friend and will never be. That was the time when our elementary teachers and other people begun to compared me with my sister. Most of them always telling that my sister was kind and humble but I were not. This was also the start when I get jealous with my sister and continually catch the attention of other using the opposite of my sister’s attitude. In short I committed rebellion knowing the fact that many doesn’t love me, my sister got all praises, they always comparing me to her, and they didn’t accept me for who am I.
It was my grade five in Elementary when my mother gets sick. This was acute kidney stone and it is a need for her to undergo operation. That operation takes millions of peso together with the hospital bill, and the medicines. My mother didn’t want to take the operation since she was thinking of the money that instead of using it to her, that, will be use perhaps to I and my sister’s education. But that was rejected by my father and decided to continue the operation to my mother. My father’s reason before is that money is replaceable and life comes only once. My father also said that I and my sister will suffer a lot if we will continue to grow with no mother. My father windrow all the money in the bank, sold our car in lowest price, sold most of our fields and things at home in order to come up with the needed money. I came to see from this notion the love of my mother to me and my sister through attempting to sacrifice her life for our education or our own good with unselfishly thinking her good too. I came also to see the love of my father to my mother through sacrificing all of our wealth for my mother’s life and came to realize the point of my father of deciding it so. The operation was successful and my mother was healed. That was the start of the time when we faced poverty which is the opposite of our past status in life.
I graduated my Grade School in Brgy. Diome Elementary School. I thought, I will not entering High School since honestly we don’t have enough money to continue my education. By God’s grace, He let me enrolled in Maria Aurora National High School, one of the public schools in our province. During that time, I came to realize the essence of my mother’s teachings before and came to recheck my unopened mind. There are no such permanent things on earth except changes. Money is necessity but it cannot manipulate you unless you let it be your life. I learned to apply my mother’s teachings and begin to consider and acknowledge the poor people. They have heart too and have the right to treat and respect equally as the rich people. From this, I can say that experience is the best teacher. It was September; during my sophomore in High School was the beginning of the restoration of all our wealth. I believe, this was by God’s grace and compassion to those who truly remain faithful on him in spite of His testing. I believe also that it is God and the Holy Spirit who change my attitude. I also believe that it is their purpose of loosing our wealth and experience poverty. That was the start when I am one of the top students in the star section. My attitude seems to be like my sister’s attitude as the days of my High School life go on.
I graduated High School in Maria Aurora National High School. Now, I am here in our prominent University which is the Central Luzon State University wherein every hand and mind of the learners are sculpted and trained to serve humanity. When I entered College, it takes a month for me to adjust since that was the time when I got separated with my parents. I continue to apply my mother’s teachings since life in College is an independent one because you’ll serve yourself with your own. I am taking up Bachelor in Secondary Education major in Biology. I didn’t plan to be a teacher but I believed there is a purpose behind why God put me on that profession. Again, it was September, four days before my birthday; during my 2nd year in College when my mother died with the same sickness. It was very hurtful to me since I am said to be mama’s girl and I was not there the time her life end because I am here in CLSU then, taking final term examination. I came to asked God why He got my mother’s life; there are many bad people around, why they are not them. Until, such time I realized the God’s purpose behind it through the help of the Lakas-Angkan family, relatives, and our Pastor in Aurora. I admit that my mother’s mission on earth and on us was end. Her teachings are more than enough to be use for me and my sister become successful in life. I, my sister and my father continue to serve God and learned to give thanks to Him whatever circumstances that we are facing. I believe that God will not give us trials beyond our capacity instead the time we encounter trials, he will give us strength for us to overcome it.
Now, I am 3rd year college. One year more, I figured out that I will be a successful teacher. I will be helping individual to become successful and for them to achieved their highest potential. From that time, I believe even my mother was not alive; surely she is very happy and proud for having a successful register nurse and a successful teacher. I and my sister will continue the passion of my mother and father in helping the poor and help the ministry of God. I believed that God will never live me nor forsake me and I also believed the world will conspires me in achieving my goals in life.
