Thanksgiving: Animo Pride

The past week was long and tiring. Paperwork and readings for majors piled up, costume tasks and expenses grew, and training nights seemed endless. I kept telling myself, "Don't give up. Stay awake!" every time I panicked about balancing my work and still being excellent in everything I did. But He is amazing, and that is pretty much the only reason how all of us in the team got through this hellish week.

Despite all the tears and moments of sheer bitchiness, the people who surrounded me throughout the duration of the competition kept my head up and encouraged me to no end. On the drive with Jero to the Araneta Coliseum yesterday morning to make it in time for our 9:00 AM call-time, I was silent. I was thinking about everything, all of my worries and anxieties about my knees and the costume and the competition, and it suddenly dawned on me that it would be very first time to compete at the Araneta Coliseum in my entire dancing life. It's the biggest stage in the country, the one that thousands of people flock to for big events such as basketball games, concerts, and dance competitions, and I would be a part of that! I grew more excited and more anxious by the minute.

But for some reason, I wasn't afraid. Yes, I was nervous about the stage and the giant crowd and our big-time competitors (namely UP Street & Ateneo's CADS), but I felt more relaxed and calm than ever before. It was a strange feeling, but I knew it was given to me to contrast the hectic week that had just passed. 

That afternoon -- after encouraging prayers and a lot of laughter and jumping around and dancing on that stage to my heart's content -- I stood on the stage of the Araneta Coliseum with my team, the La Salle Dance Company-Street, and cried infinite tears. They had just announced the winners of the 1st ever UAAP Street Dance Competition, and they had said OUR name. White confetti rained down on us from the ceiling and I was caught amongst a sea of my teammates and alumni. 

We began the school year with a championship at Maximum Groovity, and ended it with this amazing win at the UAAP Street Dance Competition. What a way to end the year right, Street.

I guess you can say that with faith, the right things happen.