"...You Lack Effort"

One of my professors told me: “Wendy, they said magaling ka daw…sabi ko ewan…you lack effort kase.”

Honestly, I was not offended by the comment, but I was puzzled by what she meant. I admit that that Prof gave me my lowest grade in this semester for “Argumentation and Debate”. I was actually pissed because I really tried hard, given the time I have for studying and to comprehend all her instructions, I tried. I admit; that was not my best…because I have 8 more subjects to study right?

Every day, I have several roles to play and tasks to complete. First of all, I am single parent; I attend to my son’s needs in school, projects, tests, contributions, emergency checkups, all the works. Before I prepare my things, I have to lay down his uniform, socks, school bag, baon and the list goes on. Second, I am a daughter and a niece; I am the one who is asked to go for errands because I am the ‘able’ body in the house. Groceries, market, pension, all errand there is. I live with people ages 60 and up. I am a student; I come to class, which takes about 8 to 10 hours of my day, and fulfill all the requirements, pay my tuition fee on time, wear my uniform and ID promptly and all the works. Lastly, I work. I need to earn money to sustain my needs. I need to earn money to sustain my son’s medicines and all else that his father cannot suffice. This is all of me and that subject is just a tiny bit of my life. I do all these everyday and with all my might I do it at MY BEST because the fact that I can do them all, I made REAL EFFORT at that.

So I thought, people can easily judge people, but there is more of what they seem to be. There are underlying reasons why they act in such a manner that may not live up to your expectations or ideals. But the thing is; they put effort in life.

Here’s the thing, after a long night of completing the debate brief she gave us as a project, and missing my beauty sleep because I have a job to attend to my son who needs my attention in the morning and still have classes to go to, I get this remark…”YOU LACK EFFORT.”

Hells bells! Everyone is entitled to their opinion right?!

“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows achievement and who at the worst if he fails at least fails while daring greatly so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”