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2002 Pax Awardee
Prepared Remarks
of Gloria T. Caoile
St. Scholastica's College Commencement
March 24, 2002
Sister Mary John Mananzan, Sister Josefina Nepomuceno, Chairman Ricardo Romulo,
esteemed faculty and staff, proud parents and friends, and members of the
graduating class of 2002, thank you so much for this award.
It was forty years ago that I walked the hallways of this wonderful school.
Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine a day such as today. I am overjoyed,
and truly humbled, by the honor you have bestowed on me.
I just arrived last night. The advantage of a long flight is that you get to
have some private moments to yourself. So while traveling the 8,500 miles from
Washington, D.C. to here, I had time to reflect on what I need to say today.
What I really want is to share with you, the graduating class, my personal
journey, throw some advice your way, and hope it comes in handy as you move
forward in the world.
Most people don’t remember who spoke at their commencement ceremony. So ten
years from now, you will probably not remember my name but I do hope that you
remember some of the things I will say.
I left St. Scholastica right after high school. I was only 16 and my mother took
me to the States so I could learn new skills and have a career. To this day, I
believe that I was able to successfully cope with my new environment because my
family and Benedictine education provided me with the essential tools.
Let me start out first with family. I want to recognize my daughter Melanie in
the audience. She flew out here with me and I am glad she is here today. She is
very special to me. Melanie, I know it’s a very busy time for you at Microsoft
but I’m glad you took time off. Thank you for being here.
If there’s anything I have done that I am most proud, I have to tell you that
being a Mother has been the most fulfilling experience. I thank God daily for
giving her to me. I know that all of you mothers -- and fathers out there, are
just as proud of your daughters today.
I cannot forget my husband Ben who is back in the States. He is my most ardent
supporter. He is a wonderful person, my friend, lover and dance partner. He has
helped me grow and is the source of my energy. I share this award with him.
My sister Cayan is also here today. She has her own memories of St. Scholastica
and her own stories to tell. Two other sisters are back in the States. They are
all St. Scho products – very strong-willed women, opinionated, loving,
intelligent and amazing individuals.
I have a brother who already passed away but his gift remains with me. He taught
me that when life throws you many curveballs –for the baseball aficionados out
there – you know that it is difficult to hit a curveball because the ball comes
spinning at you and when you’re ready to hit the ball, it drops to the ground.
Anyway, my brother taught me that hitting is about timing so when life throws
you a lot of curveballs, just learn to anticipate and you can hit the ball out
of the park.
My father has passed away. It was he who taught me laughter, self-esteem, and
resilience. He told me I could be whoever I wanted to be.
My mother is well and alive. She is my role model. She gave me courage,
independence, and taught me to reach beyond limits. She was ahead of her time.
She doesn’t admit it but she was among the early feminists, believing in the
power of women.
I have friends here and in the United States from the Class of 1962. I tell you
– they don’t make them like you any more. Thank you for the lasting friendship.
Please rise.
And there are also other Scholasticans from the States who are here today. Thank
you for the moral support.
Earlier I said there were two factors that influenced my life the most – my
family and my Benedictine education. Let me talk briefly about my experience in
this wonderful institution and discuss how my Benedictine education has
influenced my life.
There were several core values I learned in this place:
Recognize that each individual is important
Respect the views and opinions of others
Respect the work people do
Extend the same courtesy and kindness to all regardless of their position
Remember that we are stewards of God’s gifts
Be hospitable
Allow me to
briefly go through each of these values.
First, the school had a philosophy of recognizing the importance and worth of
each individual. I don’t know if this was part of the Benedictine Rule, but most
teachers encouraged individual development while emphasizing responsibility
towards others.
I was always loud and boisterous, and sometimes undisciplined, but the nuns and
teachers never gave up on me. In fact, they capitalized on my loud voice and
encouraged me to be a hallway monitor – we called them proctors in those days.
My job was to catch other kids littering. In my booming voice I would say, “Ah
ha!...throw your basura in the garbage can.”
While this may seem insignificant, I believe this was the start of teaching me
about authority, leadership, confidence and belief in self. Because St.
Scholastica made me believe that I could be a person with authority, I never
lost sight of wanting to be in a position that would allow me to direct others.
Today, I continue to perform in such a role. So my first advice is: Leave
this place with confidence. Believe in yourself.
Second, the school taught everyone to have a genuine concern for others and to
respect the views and opinions of fellow students. I quickly transferred this
value to the workplace. I learned to interact well with my fellow workers. By
respecting their views and opinions, I am able to minimize conflict; my
colleagues are encouraged to come up with solutions; and, I am able to meet
production goals at my job. People appreciate my effectiveness. They know that I
can get things done.
You can equate respecting the views and opinions of others to tolerance.
Tolerance empowers. Tolerance allows you to be open to new ideas, become more
sensitive to other cultures, and enables you to broaden your perspective. When
you know how to get along with diverse groups, you can make things happen.
Making things happen is power. My second advice, therefore, is twofold: Be
tolerant and learn to gain power so that you can make this world better.
Third, respect the work people do. This is where I remember the “Ora et Labora”
-- the Pray and Work part of my education. Now this may be a loose
interpretation so for the Theologians in the audience, please forgive me.
I remember that the Benedictine monks were scholars and teachers, but they would
also work the fields and bring in the harvest when needed. In those days,
intellectual pursuit was reserved for the privileged class and manual labor was
scorned. But the Benedictine monks showed that there was dignity in manual labor
as well as in intellectual pursuits. I have spent the majority of my working
life in a labor organization that promotes dignity in work, fair wages, and
equal opportunity. These values, I believe, are in harmony with Benedictine
teaching. Remember, respect the work people do.
Fourth, extend the same courtesy and kindness to all regardless of their
position. This is such a fundamental Christian value that I am surprised by how
many people of faith forget to exercise it. In our labor union, we have over a
million members who are public service employees – firemen, correctional
officers, garbage collectors, hospital workers and so on. These workers interact
with the public and they are trained to treat everyone equally.
We show a training video to many of our employees that depicts in one scene an
old man in untidy clothing at an emergency center. The doctor bypasses the older
gentleman to attend to the needs of a man in a business suit. In the next scene
in the video, the doctor is in front of a group of trustees of a foundation
asking for funds to support the hospital. There among the panel is the older
gentleman that he neglected in the emergency room. Do you think the doctor got
his grant?
In my job I have to coordinate the convention of more that 5,000 members. With
their friends and families, I have to take care of over 7,000 people. If I did
not extend the same courtesy and kindness to bus drivers, travel agents,
carpenters, waiters, as I do to my boss and other officials, my convention event
would be disastrous.
Let me give you another example. In Washington, D.C. where I work, because it is
a center of power, many people are obsessed with who you know. People will give
me a call to ask me to help them with their papers or even get a pass to tour
the White House.
Getting a pass to tour the White House is not very easy - you have to contact
your representative in Congress months ahead or you line up for hours at the
Parks Service. Because I have direct contact with White House staff, people
think I call the Office of the President to get the tickets. In reality, my best
contact is the guy in charge of the lines outside the White House. Every time I
call him, he has tickets available for me. I’m just telling you that don’t think
that everything revolves around job titles. Be courteous and kind to everyone
regardless of their position. If you are going to try to make it to the top
of your career, whether it is in a corporate setting, in an academic
institution, or in public service, remember to treat everyone along the way with
the same courtesy and kindness. One day you may be surprise that you belong to a
very good and effective network and belonging to an effective network creates
more opportunities for you.
The fifth value I learned here at St. Scholastica is that we are simply stewards
of God’s gifts and that to those who have been given more, much is expected. How
often did we hear that if we fall on good fortune, then it was our
responsibility to share with those less fortunate.
I learned about moderation in this school. This is an important value especially
if you live in the United States. There, it is easy to get caught up in
materialism. I think the Benedictine teaching allows you to remain grounded. I’m
often called by many groups to help support their cause. I try to involve myself
with them as much as time will allow because I believe that it is important to
serve. If you believe that you are placed on this earth to care and safeguard
God’s creation, and not to exploit it, then you will find yourself being
involved in actions that seek social justice, in efforts to reduce poverty, or
in processes that allows for good governance such as voting rights so that equal
opportunity thrives. I encourage you to think of yourselves as stewards of
God’s gifts. This belief will help guide your activism.
Finally, I don’t need to tell you this for it is such a basic Filipino value –
Be hospitable. Hospitality allows you to open your doors to others. It
allows you to be inclusive which is essential to success.
Having these six core values has allowed me to do my very best. Through God’s
graces, my life has been made full. But I am still very focused on the journey.
I feel there is much more to be accomplished. At this moment in my life, I feel
I have come full circle. I am now devoted to programs such as Feed the Hungry,
Habitat for Humanity, Cure for Tuberculosis in Children – all programs operating
here in the Philippines.
My challenge to each one of you is: Are you committed to doing your very best?
Class of 2002, heed the words of Mother Teresa: “Life is a promise; fulfill it”.
Look around you – don’t say goodbye to each other today. Today is just a page in
your book of life and a beginning to the next chapter.
Leave this place committed to do the very best you can. Tomorrow is
promised to no one, but for each day that you are given, do your very best and
fulfill the promise of life.
I have very high expectations for each and every one of you. Can you have it
all? The answer is up to you.
But let me paraphrase Nora Ephron – one of my favorite film director and writer.
If you saw You’ve Got Mail or Sleepless in Seattle, you’ll know her. About life
in front of you she says:
It will be a little messy, but embrace the mess.
It will be complicated but rejoice in the complications.
It will not be anything like what you think it’s like; but, surprises are good for you.
And don’t be frightened; you can always change your mind.
In a more serious note, let me leave you with part of a poem by Douglas Malloch:
We can’t all be captains, we’ve got to be crew
There’s something for all of us here
There’s big work to do and there’s lesser too
And the thing we must do is the near.
If we can’t be a highway then just be a trail
If you can’t be the sun be a star
For it isn’t by size that you win or fail
Be the best of whatever you are.
Thank you once again for this prestigious award. Maraming salamat, good luck to all of you and God Bless.
Read full text of Sr. Mary John Mananzan's letter to Gloria