The past week was full of activities and fun! From the
23rd of February until the 27th, our university, the
University of the Philippines Visayas, held its University Week celebration.
Academic organizations and colleges were busy with their antics and showcases.
For the most part, yummy food was available for purchase (what I liked best). Classes
were suspended to encourage student participation. Sadly, some students
preferred going home for a nice week long break from the academe. Still, events
pushed through with one theme in mind - Iskolar
ng Bayan, Bumalik sa Pinagmulan. (Scholars of the Nation, a Return to their
Roots)
I find this theme quite trite but still noteworthy
because after all what are we ‘but the
collection of our memories’ as someone said in a book I have read before.
If we forget how we started and what were our original goal was, we might end
up to never really understand what we have now, what we should be grateful of,
and what we should look forward to. Anyways, the point is, this year’s
celebration pulls us back again to our roots, traditions and culture. There
were a lot of events but the finale was the Binayle: Fiesta King and Queen 2015 beauty pageant last Friday.
It was a cool nice evening. A crowd gathered to
witness the beauty competition against four Academic Organizations: the
Skimmers, the Redbolts, the Elektrons and the Clovers. All of which belong to
one college, the College of Arts and Sciences. The event seemed nice and fun.
If you look up, you’ll see beautiful people at the stage. If you look around,
you’ll see fellow Isko and Iska having a good time. What’s not to enjoy? But
suddenly a thought struck me. I wondered, why is there such a need for beauty
pageants and the need to crown someone or a pair as the best fruit of them all?
Why should that competition be the finale of a University Week Celebration? Why
do we even celebrate at all? Has this ever came to you? Yes. I’m this fun at
parties.
To answer my own questions, I thought why not? Ha! The
end.
Just kidding! Are you still with me? Yes? Good. I have
recently learned from one of my podcasts a thing or two about beauty and
nature. I watched Cosmos: A Space Time Odyssey, a science TV show from National
Geographic. Narrated by Sir Neil deGrasse Tyson, in one of its episode, he
explains that ‘beauty is nature’s
seduction’. He further expounds that we humans love the beautiful and
naturally we protect what we love. To adapt this into our context, I could say
that having a Fiesta King and Queen for
the event meant solidarity. In a sense, we look up into these figures not just
as mere representations for beauty standards but more importantly as key
figures to belong in your course, academic organization, college and ultimately
to your fellow scholars.
To understand your thought process, it goes this way.
(Disclaimer, this is just my observation and this is NOT scientific) First, you
feel nice looking at them. They are attractive, physically. Right? The brains
part, well, we are all part of the same University so, yeah. Second, you feel
like you can identify yourself with the contestants. Both you and one of them
or a pair of them may belong to the same course, acad org, or college. You, as
the person reading right now, may have even helped them through this
competition in one way or another. Third, now that you harbor feelings of
kinship with them, you root for your bet. Fourth, the competition and the
anxiety of whose going to win makes you feel your blood pumping with excitement
and anticipation. Fifth, thus you eagerly want them to win. It makes you happy,
it makes them happy. Sixth, please don’t be like me, stop overthinking it! It’s
all fun. So, why not?
©
Jamela Montoya
Congratulations
Clovers! Fiesta King and Queen 2015
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