Cream of the Crop

I’ve read an article in the newpaper recently which was written by a young student. She feels so bad about her parents not allowing her to enroll in UP- the premier state university in the Philippines after passing the much-awaited entrance exams. She even cried upon learning that she passed. During my time, if I remember right, only 20% passed from all over the country. (I remember how we were welcomed and called the “cream of the crop” by our professors.) Since she lives far from the university, it would entail living far away from her home, which is an airplane ride away. With all the bad news, rape and hazing, etc, most parents have become paranoid about letting their children live far away from home, even if they are old enough. As for me, the reverse is true. I wish I had not enrolled there upon learning that the course I wanted was a” quota course” and my scores were not high enough to allow me to take the course I preferred. I just have to settle and choose from among the non-quota courses, and shift later if I get high grades. The trouble was, in UP, passing a course was already a problem, how much more getting a high grade average? I settled for a course I had no inkling what it was all about, just so I would be able to use the subjects I have already passed. I took pride in being a part of the “cream of the crop”, I was reluctant to enroll in another university. Besides, it was difficult to transfer.

I wasn’t so happy with the jobs I got after graduation which led me to retire early and put up a little business. I wish I got more guidance from my parents regarding my career path. They probably thought I knew what I was up to then. I kept on blaming the fact that I took the wrong course, and maybe it would have been better had I not passed the entrance exams at UP. I look with envy at friends and acquaintances who still have careers even after they reached their senior years while I retired early which also led to a hosts of problems. And to think they didn’t even make it to UP!

Or maybe it wasn’t the wrong course. Maybe it was just me!