Living the Dream

by Ann Elizabeth P. Rollon

Many sleepless nights. Drained vocal chords. Baggy eye bags. Fatigue. Stress. Why would anyone care to be a facilitator? Maybe it's because of the free vacation, free plane ticket to Iloilo, free food, and the whole experience. Maybe. And maybe you don't understand it now, but there's a lot more than that. Don't worry, I'll tell you why. I'll tell you my story and I want you to read it with your heart. :)

When I was a high school student, I participated in the PSYSC events but I never had the chance to join the CAMP. I was inspired and touched by the activities of PSYSC such as MathSciAKa and PSO. I was inspired because through the activities of PSYSC, I realized that I can do things, I can achieve things that might seem impossible for me, and that science is really fun and easy to learn. I can say that PSYSC brought out the best in me when I was in high school and I swore in my high school days that I will join PSYSC and share the things that I learned and I got from PSYSC to the future generations. I also wanted to touch other people's lives as PSYSC changed mine. I dreamt of being an ECAT and I dreamt of being a facilitator in the CAMP or CSIW.

Fulfilling my dream of being a facilitator in the CSIW or CAMP was not easy for me. I had to engage in deep and thorough discussions with my parents just to let me join the event. I asked them to let me join CSIW Tagaytay but they did not agree because I had other responsibilities at home and for other personal family reasons. Many people asked me how I was able to convince them to let me join CAMP Iloilo. It was very much farther than Tagaytay and I would be 7 days away from home. Actually, it was really hard to convince them. It started last sem break. I proved to them that I was a responsible Ate to my brothers; I proved to them that I could handle myself. Basically, I gained their trust and I told them how important this was for me and for the participants of this event. I could not believe that my parents really allowed me to join the CAMP. It was very unlikely but it seems that my efforts paid a lot.

Being a facilitator does not start on CAMP Day 1. Our responsibility as a facilitator starts from the preparations for the event. You have to be there on every staff training and preparation for the dances, the workshops, the costumes, and other staff work. Somehow it was hard for me because I had to balance being a facilitator in PSYSC and being a facilitator at home. I needed to be at home for my brothers while I needed to be there for PSYSC. The solution: balance your time and know your priorities and responsibilities.

Before we went to the airport, I read all the handouts they gave because I was a bit nervous on what will happen and what I should do during the CAMP. When we were in the airport, we were very excited and energetic even though many of us lacked sleep. When we arrived at the hotel, we started practicing and we helped the other committees and when there was nothing much to do, we were advised to take some rest because the succeeding activities would surely be strenuous. I was excited and nervous because I didn't know what I would do when I meet my kids or "anak" from my own "Satrape" or sub-camp.

Day 1. We helped with the registration and the auditions for the entertainment night. There, I met many kids and they told me a lot of stories. It was fun because I gained confidence while I was talking with the kids. I reminded myself: Just be yourself. Just be your happy self. When I met my own villagers from Satrape 11, I just met them with a big smile and I just talked to them a lot like the normal Elise who is very talkative, fun and smiling. I wanted to ask them about themselves but they preferred to interview me instead. From the very first night I saw my kids, I knew that this CAMP would really be fun.

Workshops. These two days were full of lectures, workshops and other activities. I was very proud of my kids in the workshops because I think they are very independent. You can just instruct them what to do and then they will do it by themselves. Sometimes, they have questions regarding the workshops. However, as a faci, you can't teach them the answer. So I just told them: "Remember when you're doing experiments, you look at your observations. So just be observant and I'll teach you the answer when we eat together at lunch." So, I just let them figure it out by themselves and after the workshops, I taught them the Chemistry of what happened. I think it's very important that you process what happened in the workshops so that your kids would really learn. I love Chem and I want to share to them my love for Chem. In that way, they would appreciate science better.

Illness and Missing Kids. There are two major problems of being a facilitator. First, many kids would fall sick or feel sick from time to time. You've got to know how to handle them. I knew nothing about medical stuff and first aid so I just trusted the medics who were available at the moment. Some kids ask permission from me to go to their rooms to get personal medicine and rest, sometimes I allow them but sometimes I don't know when they're lying or not. I just advised them to go to the medics first. The second major problem is the missing kids. There are some kids that you don't see during lectures and the big problem is that they would only text you when they're gone. I think two kids told me through text, "Ate, nasa SM lang po ako." for different reasons. I was really worried when I read this because I don't know what might happen to them and I can't prevent them from going there because they were already outside. I can do nothing but to teach them a lesson. I told them in a gentle and sweet manner that they should not be outside the CAMP premises. I told them: "Bakit kayo lumabas? Bakit kayo hindi nagpaalam? Kahit na high school students na po kayo, wag po tayong lalabas kasi habang nandito kayo sa CAMP, responsibility kayo ng PSYSC at responsibility namin kayo bilang kami ang inyong guardian. Kung ano mang mangyari sainyo habang CAMP, responsibility namin kayo." When they came back to the CAMP premises, they approached me and told me "Sorry, ate." with a shy smile. I knew then that they already learned the lesson and got what I was trying to say.

The Ultimate Bonding Experience. The fieldtrip was the ultimate bonding experience for my Satrape 11 because we spent the whole day together taking pictures and talking to each other. Before the fieldtrip, my satrape was close enough but after the field trip, we really became bonded like glue. We took a lot of group pictures and called ourselves the "Most Vain Satrape", our self-proclaimed award. Through the pictures, the stories and the jokes, we knew each other more and more and more. There was a time that I slept while standing in the bus. My kid noticed it and offered his seat for me. I was really touched by these kids. They shared seats just to let me sit and take a rest because I was really exhausted. I learned that these kids are really sweet and touching too. I treated them as my kids or my brothers and sisters along the way.

The Final Moment. The ‘faci moment’ during the closing night was somehow our final moment to spend with our kids. During my faci moment, I wasn't able to tell them everything because it was supposed to be just one minute so I just told them something like this: "Guys, sana nag-enjoy kayo sa 3-4 na araw na tayo'y nagkasama. Sana marami kayong natutunan tungkol sa teamwork, sa chem at sa mga kung ano anong pinagsasabi ko sa inyong lahat. Kasi ako, nag-enjoy ako at sa 3-4 na araw na tayo'y magkasama ay itinuring ko na kayo bilang aking mga kaibigan, mga kapatid, at mga anak. Dahil sainyo, mas nagkaroon ng halaga ang linyang.. sa PSYSC, nakilala kita."

I wasn't able to cry on stage so I just cried backstage and I cried when I went to them and they all hugged me one by one. They told them that they would miss me. They thanked me and they wished that we would see each other again in the next CAMP. We were all crying. We can't stop the tears in our eyes. We were all very happy and yet emotional. I was really touched.

In the end, being a facilitator is not simply doing the physical job of guarding your kids, nor the mental job of teaching them chemistry or science and its not even about a free vacation because during the event, there is none. I think, being a facilitator is about touching the lives and changing the lives of others. Sometimes it's about teaching them a few lessons in life. It's like sharing to them a piece of you and reaching for their hearts. When you are a facilitator, some way or another, you are able to create even a small change in their lives. So just continue all the hard work because all the sleepless nights, stress, strain, fatigue that you've got will not matter in the end because you are able to change lives. :)

Ann Elizabeth P. Rollon
Facilitator, CAMP 2011