My name is Perfecto Miguel, the eldest son but the middle child in a brood of five.
Being the eldest son, I was given the privilege to be named after my father, Perfecto; while Miguel was taken from St. Michael The Archangel, the patron saint of my father’s hometown. My friends call me Miguel but at home I am affectionately called Jun Two – a nickname coined by my father who is called Jun by his families, friends and associates.
We are five (5) broods in the family which at today’s standard is considered a big family. The eldest is Patricia who is now in her junior year at the Ateneo College of Law; while the next in line is Michaela, a recently graduated Accounting student at De La Salle University, and preparing for her CPA Board Exam in May 2019. I am the middle child in the family but the eldest son as well. I am fondly called by my mother as her Millennium Baby as I was born in year 2000. The fourth among the broods is Antonio, whom I called as my Irish twin brother as we were born 11 months apart. Interestingly, he was nicknamed Anjun which is short for Another Jun. The youngest in the family is Paolo, 13 years old, and nicknamed Bonjun – obviously a play of the words “Bunso of Jun”.
My father is a practicing certified public accountant and lawyer; while my mother willingly gave up her career as human resource person to take up the more challenging career path of being with us all the time. As a family, we love to travel on weekends and holidays. When my maternal grandmother was still alive, we spend our Holy Week in Naga City, Cam Sur, and attend the Feast of Penafrancia every September. During those trips to Naga City, I remember we always stop for a break at the Quezon National Forest Park in Quezon Province for fresh buko juice and simply be awed by the landscape from the mountain top and the fascinating varieties of flora.
Summer and Christmas breaks are spent at in Zambales where we learned those childhood games of my father such as slingshot, river swim, bird hunting, bike-all-you-want in the farm, frolicking in the beach, and simply enjoy the carefree days of our boyhood without the wires and gadgets. In between these holidays and long breaks, we go to Tagaytay, Laguna, and as far as Legaspi City in the south; and Subic, Clark and Pangasinan in the north.
I went to O.B. Montessori Center during my preschool and grades school. The Montessori System is an approach to education that takes to heart the needs, talents, gifts, and special individuality of each child. It is a process that aims to help children learn to become self-reliant, independent and foster respect and understanding for values and skills necessary for creating a sustainable future. O.B. Montessori substantially contributed to my personality development which enables me to carry myself with confidence in the outside world. I was given the Leadership Award during our grade school graduation, an award which is normally reserved to the Graduating Class Valedictorian. Hence, I considered such award as recognition not only of my excellent leadership skills but also in excelling in other extracurricular activities.
From Montessori System, I went to a traditional school, Westfield Science Oriented School, for my high school. Westfield provides a caring environment in which the pursuit of learning excellence is complemented by the development of the student through a discipline-oriented curriculum and proactive Math and Science programs. I believe that with the curriculum focused on Math and Science programs, it will help me prepare for my college education and carve my future as a medical doctor.
To prepare me to meet new set of school mates and friends in a bigger scenario and environment, I enrolled at De La Salle University, Manila Campus, for my Grades 11 and 12.
I believe that education provided by the four (4) corners of a classroom may get the job done but it is not exactly as fulfilling or effective as going out of your comfort zone and travel in different places. Traveling broadens your cultural, intellectual, and spiritual knowledge. I am fortunate to travel with my family to places like Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and United States. I admire the discipline of Japanese people, envy the cleanliness of Singapore, impressed by Hong Kong’s skyline which is breathtaking from a multitude of angles, and inspired by the fabled land of riches and endless possibilities in the United States. I look forward to travelling alone as it will test my will, patience, fortitude and independence.
I love music too. I have been attending piano lessons since I was 5 years old, and a regular selected participant to various piano festivals organized by the Piano Teachers’ Guild of the Philippines, the latest of which was in March 2018. I remember that I braved that usual Friday traffic in Paco, Manila that day to perform together with my brother, Anjun, at the Concert at The Park.
I always say to myself that every great dream has no defined parameters. It is only thru our own fear that we set the limitations in dreaming big. These words serve as my guiding principle to come out of the don'ts and impossibilities to realize my dream. END
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