Will it be worth it?

By Jill

I don’t know when it started, but lately (or maybe not so) the word emo has been used repeatedly to describe our batch, Baskal. It may be from the fact that on most activities, someone always ends up in tears. There were also a several times when some of us went through “deferring points.” Are AguActivities for apps really that hard? Or are we just really emo?

Well, it may be a bit of both. The application process in UP Aguman is not easy, and it never claimed to be. As Minsky said in our AVP, “becoming part of a big time group requires big time ways to prove you are deserving.” The kind of kinship within Aguman can only result from people who really exert efforts for the org, and if the application process was easier, then kinship wouldn’t be as strong. If no big time ways were required for one to become part of Aguman, then the bond wouldn’t be as tight.

The activities, though at times hard, are really just right. But even with this knowledge, frustration sometimes still gets the better of us; clouding our views and making us at times wonder if our efforts will eventually pay off in the end. Most of what happened in the application process was unexpected. I’m sure it was not just me who was taken by surprise. From Talents Night to FR, we apps (fomer pala, yehey!) did not know what exactly to anticipate, because although guidelines were given, nothing can really prepare us for the real thing.

Will it be worth it? That is a question we always asked ourselves, each other, as well as some of the mems. And the answer from mems would always be a resounding “YES”. Yes, they said, you’ll all see why in the end. And though it was hard at times, especially when we had to compromise some things for the application process, we still held on because we trusted the people in the org who told us to just keep on.

I’m not sure if Baskal is the most emo batch to ever apply in Aguman, but though often perceived as a negative trait, our being emo can actually be a good thing. We immerse ourselves totally in the tasks given to us that our investment in this org is really something we won’t put to waste.

The question “Will it be worth it?” shouldn’t even be asked, because the journey itself is part of the destination. The application process in Aguman is not just a way for apps to prove their worth, or for mems to have fun. As Ate Daph told me before she signed my sigsheet, “in the org we want members who are trained to be leaders.” Every step in the app process has a reason. And the answer to the question of whether it will be worth it or not, lies not only in the end when an app becomes a mem, but also in the lessons that an app learns through the tasks.