Last Saturday, February 21st, I was privileged enough to spend the whole afternoon at Moonleaf Maginhawa to celebrate I Know Write Manila's first birthday hangout! To this day, the experience is still totally surreal to me. I met some creative and genuine fellow teen bloggers of mine, snacked on my favorite wintermelon milk tea and listened to 4/4 of my legitimate queens give tips on how to survive and prosper on the Internet and in the real world, as well.
Above is the message Queen Marla Miniano of Candy Magazine wrote on my planner. Thanks to her, I learned how to be more confident in being my own person on the cyberspace. She pointed out that contrary to popular belief, it is fine to be inconsistent and to continue discovering different versions of oneself. I was very relieved that she pointed that out because I felt that wanting to have a variety of personalities both online and offline was being pretentious, but as Ms. Marla put it, it's a way to grow and find out what is truly important for you.
Over here is what Queen Reese Lansangan, blogger-designer-singer extraordinaire and fellow SHSian, wrote. She shared several blogging / life mantras with us that day, my favorite one being "Everything that can happen in a day" from David Horvitz. It's quite an unusual quote, as it doesn't even seem to have a complete thought. But, you see, that's the point. For me, these group of words symbolize the twenty-four hours in a day. Just as you have an infinite number of ways to make it a sentence, you also have never-ending possibilities on how to spend your day. I don't know if I'm making any sense at this point, but this is officially my new motto haha.
And this is Queen Arriane Serafico's letter for me, which she also wrote on my planner. She helped me become aware of how one can use the Internet as a tool for social change because of Queen Arriane Serafico, also known as the Woman in Progress. She made me see how much more important it is to show how much I care about a certain cause outside my computer screen, instead of typing up empty promises on my social networking accounts. She also showed us this video, which I highly recommend! It's truly an eye-opener!
Last but most definitely not the least, Queen Abbey Sy, ruler of the typography world, blessed me with a personalized message that I would like to have tattooed on my forehead. Anyone who knows even just a quarter of a percent of who she really is, is aware that she is always creating. She taught all of us present that we must make /anything/, all the time: be it ideas, goals, content or most importantly, opportunities. You see, we are all still works in progress and we must seize every moment there is to create what our heart wants.
I'd also like to give a shoutout to some other people: first, to the I Know Write MNL core team: Ate Jodie, Ate Cidee, Ate Niña, Ate Lara and Ate Arielle. Congratulations for holding such a successful event! Even though I've only spent a short time with you guys, your passion and commitment is evident in everything you do, which is why I know for a fact that you deserve all the success you're receiving right now.
Hi as well to Patricia Fermin, my classmate / friend / life goal, who was the only person in the venue that I knew. You're so full of talent and potential. God, I know you're bound to do great things in life. And how could I forget to mention my new friends Caitlin, Yeda, Zianne, Ate Macy / Macee, Julie and Cess??!!! I sadly don't have pictures with all of you, which is why I really hope we could see each other super soon and take some snaps together! Yay!
Okay, that's pretty much it. (What an anti-climactic ending.) Since I am in an extremely good mood, instead of leaving you with just a video of my favorite song at the moment, I'm going to bless you with Patrick Verona's rendition of Can't Take My Eyes Off You in the 1999 chick flick 10 Things I Hate About You. Thank you for sticking with me, and remember that I'm sending all my love to you, wherever you may be right now.
Always, Angel
Always, Angel