beyond toxicity

I completely understand that more than the attire, what the diploma represent is most essential ofcourse, but it surely counts a lot if you’ll dress for the part.

This is the time of the year when we usually see youngsters in the streets mostly in smart casuals to formal attires, young men in their “ISPOOTING na ISPOOTING“
(read : stylish) trying to be dapper in their own right & ladies who are mostly fully made up trying to walk comfortably in high heels for the event. These guys are commonly seen these days with caps & togas on way to their graduation.

This is the time of the year when I remember most my own graduation rites. I recall our ceremony from elementary was done inside a church in Marikina City for I am an alumnus of a catholic school. It was a requirement for us to wear white long sleeves & black pants (what’s with that attire? we all looked like waiters in a restaurant. Not that I discount being a waiter, hell no, it’s a decent job but talk about most of their uniforms…) Anyway, I finished elementary 9th place in my batch (applause, applause!).

Then I transferred school & went through high school. During the graduatio, we wore white togas & caps, inside it, again, we were asked to wear white long sleeves with a tie. I bought my silk abstract-painted tie in Koalition Zoo in Robinson’s Galleria (if you’re 30 something years old & a frequent goer of Galleria in those years, you know those shops that comprised Koalition Zoo).

Until now, I regret the fact that I did not wear something spruce & stylish during our college graduation. After finishing a premedical degree from FEU, my batchmates & I on March of 1997 found ourselves marching in the aisles of PICC wearing battle green togas & caps. Gee, everything could have been perfect if not for my jologs (read: pathetically cheap & corny) attire inside that dignified toga! I wore AGAIN, a white long sleeves which I only bought and haggled in one of the bargain stores in Greenhills. Most of my batchmates wore suits & ties, gowns & other formals. From then on, I told myself that I will not take for granted such occassions & would prepare appropriate attire worthy of the event.

I went to med school & after another 4 grueling years, I had to attend another graduation. It was a perfect time for me to fulfill a personal promise. So when my mom asked me where to buy my grad attire, I told her I found a place somewhere in Makati. We went to an outlet store of Italian clothes called Corso Marconi where sale items from stores like Linea Italia & Uomo are stocked. I chose a gray suit & pants, & bought a silk tie & shirt of the same shade from Marks & Spencer (that started my addiction to M&S ties & shirts). My shoes came from Traffic. But best of all, I am with my future wife during my medicine graduation. It was really worth the “porma”. lol.

Drs. Fatz, Coni, Me & my sister-in-law Bibs

My next graduation was held in a hospital. It was a year after I had my post-graduate medical internship program in Quirino Memorial Medical Center. My batchmates & I agreed to wear something BLUE. I wore Marks & Spencer blue shirt & silk tie.

QMMC Post Graduate Medical Internship Program Graduation 2001 -2002

Then comes the turning of the tide when my own son gets to march the aisle to graduate from his very first year in school. Since he’s a part of the dancing preschoolers to the tune of “I will follow Him” from the movie Sister Act, they were asked to wear (here we go again) white long sleeves & black tie for the presentation. After their performance, his mother brought him to somewhere private & change his attire to something special. With his mom’s meticulous attention to details combined with my not-so-pleasant graduation experiences, we decided to ask our costurera to prepare Gabby an oriental tunic for his ceremony. And there he was… A little Kung Fu kid besting all of his batchmates in the STYLE category, well, at least for us, lol. Actually, I envy kids nowadays – as early as preschool, they have graduation that comes with awarding of top honors of classes. Even though my son did not own a special award or something, he will forever be number ONE in our hearts. It’s enough for now he got 3rd place (beating 51 nursery pupils) in their Declamation contest last month. He still has years ahead of him.
Gabby’s nursery graduation was held at Henry Lee Irwin Theater inside Ateneo de Manila University last Friday. Allow me to share photos of that special event…

Twinkle Toes Academy’s preschool grad rites started past 3PM & ended before 6.
We headed straight to TGIF Trinoma for dinner…

Congratz Gabby & more graduations to come! Carry on, son!