RESPONSE
Vernon R. Totanes
Delivered
at the Joint Oath Taking and Induction Ceremonies for Librarians
Honorable Susima Gonzales, Honorable Perla Garcia, Honorable Corazon Nera, Honorable Elizabeth Peralejo, Dr. Linda Tayona, Dean Ma. Divina Pascua-Cruz, fellow oath takers, teachers, parents, relatives and friends,
Good afternoon.
Let me start with a summary, or—in the language
of our profession—an abstract:
·
We
did not win the lottery.
·
Let
us remember those who are not here today.
·
We
already are… but not yet.
·
And
finally, do unto others what you would have others do unto OTHERS.
One, we did not win the lottery.
I’m sure many of you, like me, heard the following after the results came out: “Pakain ka naman” or “Manlibre ka naman.” And most, if not all, obliged—though not necessarily with a smile.
Passing the board exam, after all, is not like
Christmas or a birthday that you know you need to set aside money for. Nor is
it like a promotion or winning the lottery, where you know you’ll be receiving
money to pay for your expenses.
In fact, we had to spend money for our review classes, transportation, food, housing, application fees, etc. And then, of course, there were also salaries foregone for those like me who are not yet entitled to vacation leaves.
I think it would be more apt to compare passing the board exam to graduating from school—somebody else spends for everything and the graduate even gets gifts!
But if passing the board exam were like winning the lottery, it would imply that we just got lucky. It was not luck, but a lot of hard work—whether in the weeks before the exam, months of attending classes while working at the same time, or years of being a library assistant and attending to the needs of husbands, wives and children.
We did not win the lottery. We did not get lucky. We deserve to be here.
Two, we deserve to be here, but let us also
remember those who are not here today.
From 1992 to 2003, the passing rate was 50
percent or higher, except for two years: 1992, 36 percent; and 1996, 44
percent. This year the passing rate was 29 percent. Is it possible that the
exam this year was that difficult? Is it possible that the majority of
examinees this year were less capable than those of other years? These
are possible, of course, but in my opinion not very likely.
Earlier today, I was informed that there was a
change in determining examinees’ grades this year. In previous years, they were
using the mean in computing grades. But this year, they shifted to a system
that is being used by all other professions.
However, I have to mention that the examinees
from Metro Manila took the exams in an environment NOT conducive to taking
exams. Of the six exams given over a period of two days, only the first exam
took place under optimal conditions. All the others were taken by examinees in
an environment that was madilim, mainit, maingay,
mabaho—at meron pang pumuputok-putok sa labas.
I am not blaming anyone for the brownouts that
occurred, but I would like to humbly suggest, for the benefit of future
examinees, that another location be chosen for next year’s exams. This location
need not have generators, but this location should, at the very least, have
windows that can be opened in case of brownouts.
Three, we already are… but not yet.
Christmas is already in the air, but it isn’t quite Christmas just yet. The same is true of the Kingdom of God that Christians are waiting for. It is said that we are already living in this Kingdom today… but not yet. And that is why this concept is commonly referred to as the “already but not yet.”
Those who took their oath today may be said to be professionals already… but not yet. Can one, in fact, truly be considered a “professional” right after taking the oath? And so, we would like to thank the Professional Regulation Commission and the Board for Librarians for their effort to professionalize librarianship.
Those who took their oath today may also be said to be librarians already… but not yet. Many of us are still unemployed, under-employed, or employed but not working in libraries, so how can we say that we are already librarians? And yet, because of the education we have received at our respective schools, I do believe we are more than ready to be librarians. We would like to thank the faculty and staff of our schools for their dedication, understanding and patience.
It may also be said that those who took their oath today are already the persons they want to be… but not yet. For the persons we already are and the persons we have yet to become, we are grateful to our parents, husbands, wives, children, relatives, teachers, bosses, classmates, co-employees, friends.
And what may be said of those who took their oath today may also be said of everyone who is here now. All of us are already the persons we want to be… and yet, there is still so much more that we can become and do—as Filipinos, professionals, librarians, and persons—because life is a process of becoming what we already are … but not yet.
Finally, do unto others what you
would have others do unto OTHERS.
Allow me now to thank a few people who have inspired me to do for others what they did for me.
· The late Dr. Josephine Sison, who was teacher, mentor, and friend to many of us;
· Mrs. Elizabeth Peralejo, who was the moderator of the library club at the Ateneo Grade School when I was in Grade 6;
· Dean Ma. Divina Pascua-Cruz and the faculty and staff of the Institute of Library and Information Science of the University of the Philippines, who made it possible for me and all of us from UP to get our degree, and this, of course, allowed us to take the board exams;
· The late Bro. James Dunne, Mr. Onofre Pagsanghan, Dr. Robert Buenaventura, and Fr. Victor Salanga, who taught me about life and love inside and outside the classroom;
· Ms. Veraflor Totanes, my sister, and Mr. Verchie Totanes, my brother, who helped me in countless ways over the years; and, of course,
· Mrs. Florentina Totanes, my mother, a retired public school teacher, who taught me my ABCs and 123s, and Major General Virgilio Totanes, my father, a retired military officer, who taught me how to read—with intelligence—the words “See Bantay run.” They are my retired—but not quite tired—parents, who have continued over the years to love, support, nurture and feed their wonderful children.
Allow me to end as I began:
·
We
did not win the lottery.
·
Let
us remember those who are not here today.
·
We
already are… but not yet.
·
And
finally, do unto others what you would have others do unto OTHERS.
Thank you very much.