it's over. it's all over.

the semester, that is. the first 4 months of college have passed me by, leaving me here. leaving me with new friends, with newfound knowledge, and richer in experience. and now the sem break welcomes me with open arms, and i am ready to embrace it. all tests are finished, all requirements are passed, with the few exemptions of the final term paper, fitness program, and probable math exam (okay, not so few). but regardless of the few impediments remaining, the spirit of the break already burns inside of me, and i am all ready to dive into the 3 weeks of r&r before my next session of hell a.k.a. second sem.

as the previous week was the last class week of the semester, it was a week full of goodbyes, farewells, and till-we-meet-agains. to each course, a different method of ending. to each prof, a different way to say goodbye.

histo 1 was technically over last week: our 2nd (and last) exam was the other thursday, and all we did for the last 2 meetings was to watch batas militar, which unfortunately, i didn't pay much attention to. our prof just popped in for 30 seconds before we started last monday for a few inspirational words about being good doctors, and class card issues. nothing too personal, but maybe just as it should be.

comm hasn't ended yet, and will probably never end. my paper is still under construction. similar to research in 4th year, i will probably be plagued with the need to update my term paper. i've heard that if something is still disagreeable with the paper, even after final submission, maam panch will still seek out the author and demand revisions. hoping that doesn't happen to me. my last "meeting" will be on thursday, with the submission of the final version. not expecting any long goodbyes here.

philo was just a pain. the last 2 meetings were hurried discussions on ethics, and the finals were last saturday. can't say i particularly enjoyed any of these. nor can i say that i will miss my prof. i'm pretty sure she doesn't even know me by name until now. only as ginoo #1. just as well. good riddance.

histo 2 might have been better if i scored higher in the exam, if i joined in any presentations, and if my prof was even aware of my existence. lots of my classmates received notes in red ballpen inscribed in their blue books. as expected, i got none. based on what i've read, they mostly consisted of my prof saying that these people get 1.0 in their class card, and any additional credit they might have gotten but was not utilized could just be passed on to pi 100 during the summer. now, nearly the whole class wants to petition that we get the same prof for rizal studies. this might not be the last of him. i say no. but who listens to me anyway? no one knows i'm alive.

math was probably the only subject which knows how to say goodbye. the 5th dep was held yesterday, and maybe as a parting gift, the exam was relatively easier than others. i just might be able to snatch exemption. but the bad thing is, i might be pressured (by my conscience) to take the finals anyway, since nearly all my classmates, regardless of exemption, plan on taking the finals, because it's been said that the exams were easy and just a way of bringing grades up. and as an added treat, our prof sang to us just minutes before the exam. our own private performance. surprisingly, i really enjoyed it, and i will probably treasure that moment. "it doesn't get any worse than this, the best is yet to come."

with the air clearing up, most of the requirements over with, i've gotten to thinking about what transpired over the last 4 months. there are some of things i wish i could have done better. there are some things i know i could have done better. there are some things i wish i had never done at all. but it's all over, and all i have left is a choice to make. to regret what has happened to me over the sem, to cry over spilt milk, looking back with remorse and loathing, to live with the thought of what could have been. or to treasure everything that has come to pass, never forgetting the lessons and teachers, to look to the future, treating this as a stepping stone getting me closer to my goals.

i choose the latter. i may not have gone through the sem to the best of my abilities, but this will serve as a lesson for me, to strive harder if i want more out of myself. everything i've been through has enriched me as a person in ways i have never dreamed of. the people, the friends, the teachers, the lessons in and out of the classroom, the experiences, the memories, the times.

they will be sorely missed.