UP Naming Mahal

Ours is a story forever etched in my heart.

I remember the day I first heard about you. I don't have any idea who you are or the greatness that you possess.

I remembered vividly when our discipline officer talked about you in front of our class. 

She told us that we need to pass a test before we can be with you. 

I'm glad I passed your test.

And there, our story began.

I never knew it would change my life forever. 

The first time I saw you, I was in awe of your beauty.

The people with us were different, not the bad kind of different.

They were real and unique and beautiful.

And I started to realize that my love for you is growing every single day. 

You taught me how it is to love more than what love could possibly mean.

You taught me how to selflessly love people.

You taught me how to fight and how to fight hard.

You taught me that service is not something written in the curriculum vitae but something that should be done with great commitment.

You taught me how hard it is to get hurt seeing that the people you love are becoming victims of the injustices of the society. 

You opened my eyes to realities that people in power don't want the public to see.

You were there when I questioned realities that the society has set. 

You gave me freedom to discover who I really am and allowed me to grow into the woman that I've become.

You accepted me without judgement.

You are different and one of a kind and I love you, I am in love with you.

Things weren't always happy.

You had rules that were way far from acceptable.

You allowed people to use you for their own interest.

But  I know you don't like the way they used you.

So you taught me how to fight back.

And you brought along people so we can fight back together. 

We fought a good fight and the fight is not yet over.

Sadly, we had to part ways. 

It was inevitable. 

You had to let me go and let me grow.

It was difficult not being with you for quite some time.

The world was too harsh.

It was everything you taught me about but you weren't there to protect me anymore.

You weren't there to remind me how things should be.

You allowed me to commit mistakes and made me learn from them.

The world was harsh.

It told me that what you taught me was unreal.

It showed me it "realities" and what it was like outside your comfort zone.

And at some point, I got lost - in contradiction, in realities, in life. 

The confusion and weariness grew and grew.

I felt like I was in a dead end and don't know where to go.

And I knew that I had to go to back to you.

I came running back and you accepted me once again.

I now find myself loving you even more.

You reminded me of the idealism we once shared and the things we need to achieve in the midst of all the so called realities.

 You are the calm in my strongest storms.

You are my peace when everything else is at war.

You are my stability when everything seem to be unstable.

You are the force in my struggle. 

I know we have to part ways soon and I cannot keep you forever.

But this time around, I hope I'll remember everything you taught me.

And may the realities of the world never erase the idealism you planted in my heart.

On your 107th Founding Anniversary, I wonder how many lives you've touched or how many lives you've changed.

But one thing I know, you definitely changed one - MINE.