I recently read articles posted on two popular national news sites about someone who graduated recently with a BS Applied Physics degree from UP. Nothing unusual there, except for the fact that the articles were both based on a post the graduate wrote himself, which somehow became viral over social media. The gist of the story, as far as I can tell, is the usual good ol’ fashioned “rags to riches,” “succeed against all odds”-type that certainly appeals to the majority of Filipinos. In his post, he also mentioned that while he may have succeeded despite being poor, it is an exception, not the norm, because millions of poor Filipinos still do not have access to the proper education that they rightly deserve. Being poor is a hindrance to education, health, and well, basically anything. But if you happen to be someone gifted with intellectual prowess, in a country like the Philippines, education seems to be the only sure-fire way to change your socio-economic status in life. Because if you’re smart enough, at least opportunities are available so you can get your education for free, and then that will be your jumping board for a career and everything else.

The story strikes me because I personally know of many people who started from “nothing” and somehow succeeded despite the odds against them being poor. I know exactly how that feels, because believe it or not, once upon a time I too skipped meals because I didn’t have any money. I pawned household items just so I could buy dinner. My parents certainly could not afford to send me to college, and it was only through the saving grace of scholarships that I was able to get an education.

My husband also came from similar humble beginnings, and we would often discuss how we ended up the way we did. We would not have met if we didn’t both end up choosing an esoteric course like Physics, because “poor but deserving” and academically excelling students like us were only offered scholarships in the very subjects that the rich and entitled students would never take. These were the only options available to us. I mean, some people I know only chose Physics because it was a non-quota course (at least way back then) and also fulfills the scholarship requirement for a science course. I realized this when I was in the university. Most of the rich students were taking economics and business administration, which are quite practical in the way of handling family-run businesses or starting up new companies. So it kind of becomes like a cycle. The rich find means to preserve and expand their wealth by educating themselves on the very ways to do so, while the poor are left with esoteric subjects like Physics, which are almost always guaranteed NOT to make one financially successful.

Don’t get me wrong; I took up Physics not because I thought it would make me rich (though I must admit I entertained the thought that maybe I could work at a famous place like NASA, in which case I would be rich); if I’m being honest with myself, I chose Physics because I thought myself to be too smart to take anything else. Someone actually suggested to me that if I wanted to become rich, I should take up nursing instead so I can go abroad and earn thousands of bucks. Obviously I didn’t heed that advice, and eventually chose a course that I thought fitted me intellectually. I didn’t even bother to think about what kind of job it would land me when I graduate. I was too wrapped up in my own intellectual bubble, thinking that what an awesome privilege it is to understand concepts that the common masa does not. In my mind’s eye I saw myself as intellectually superior, and my worth was certainly not diminished even if I lived below the poverty line.

When I finally graduated, did it feel like I succeeded? Not at all. I felt like I accomplished something no ordinary citizen could, but neither was I in a position to command respect in the same way that rich and powerful people do. In retrospect, it only marked the beginning to a long and arduous journey that finally took me to where I am now. I decided to take up graduate studies and later on a PhD. But even after that it didn’t really feel like I have succeeded in any way. By the time I got my PhD, my family was still living in someone else’s property, and only got by through the regular remittances I culled from my scholarship allowance. By then I had already devoted almost 10 years of my life studying; by contrast, in that same period my cousins in the States have already purchased themselves luxurious houses and cars, after graduating from a four-year course and doing the kind of job that I thought I was not suited for. So yeah, that really made me think long and hard about my life’s choices.

I guess it boils down to one’s definition of success. It depends on the kind of values and metrics that vary from one individual to the next. But if we are going to use material possessions as a metric, well, I guess Physics did not really get me as far as Nursing did for some people I know. But at least now I do not really have to worry about basic necessities like food and housing, where to get money to pay for my own daughter’s education, and tell you what, that’s something. In my line of work, I get to contribute my “bit” to the growing wealth of knowledge, and sometimes, just sometimes, I discover new things which make me giddy with joy and happiness. I get to publish my findings in papers which will remain as permanent records long after I’m gone and no one alive knows my name. That is my contribution, and achieving this is my own definition of success.

One day I overheard my daughter talking with a friend online about why someone would choose to study something like Philosophy, or Physics. They asked, what do they end up doing anyway?

She said with a chuckle, “Well, you know both my parents took up Physics, but they’re doing cooler things now.” 🙂