I never really thought I could do it but somehow I did.
I am not a dancer and would prefer it much better to sing than dance in front of an audience. But during our anniversary party, I performed the Dumendingan, a Subanen dance equivalent to the Tinikling of the Visayas. Only 3 women were to perform it and during the screening, our trainer asked if I could be one of the dancers. I did not immediately say yes. I tried dancing between the bamboo poles first before finally deciding.
What got me to decide on the affirmative was the thought that I'm probably not going to do something like this again in my lifetime. I will only be given this one chance and if I say no, I will never know if I could really do it. I hoped to God that when I am old and can't hardly walk anymore, I can look back at my younger years with a smile and not have "what ifs" and "if only" notions lingering in my mind.
That night, I breathed a small prayer for presence of mind seconds before we put our feet between the bamboo poles. I dreaded that the clickers might not start in unison and we become lost in the rhythm. But there was no need to fear for my prayers were answered and we ended our Khinlesung Dance wonderfully. The audience was amazed and we all got 10 points plus very wonderful comments from the judges.
I am not a dancer and would prefer it much better to sing than dance in front of an audience. But during our anniversary party, I performed the Dumendingan, a Subanen dance equivalent to the Tinikling of the Visayas. Only 3 women were to perform it and during the screening, our trainer asked if I could be one of the dancers. I did not immediately say yes. I tried dancing between the bamboo poles first before finally deciding.
What got me to decide on the affirmative was the thought that I'm probably not going to do something like this again in my lifetime. I will only be given this one chance and if I say no, I will never know if I could really do it. I hoped to God that when I am old and can't hardly walk anymore, I can look back at my younger years with a smile and not have "what ifs" and "if only" notions lingering in my mind.
That night, I breathed a small prayer for presence of mind seconds before we put our feet between the bamboo poles. I dreaded that the clickers might not start in unison and we become lost in the rhythm. But there was no need to fear for my prayers were answered and we ended our Khinlesung Dance wonderfully. The audience was amazed and we all got 10 points plus very wonderful comments from the judges.
But that was nothing compared to what I dreaded most about that night. At least with the dance, I get to master the foot works, but with the hosting, no matter how I rehearse, the result is still unpredictable.
When Jeca told me that I was to be one of the MCs for the Aniv. Party, I immediately said yes. What is there to lose anyway? It's not really something I have never done before. The first time was even more scary because it was during the 50th Grand Anniversary and I was only 5 months in on the job when the boss requested/ordered me to do it. Couldn’t very well say no to him.
But when I read the script, I couldn’t stop from laughing and I kept asking myself if I made the right decision. The style of the program was to be like that of Showtime ala Pilipinas got Talent. There was a Boses ng Bayan and you get to interview the audience to ask them the reason of their score.
Its was very scary because you have to be really lively in order to jive with the crowd and I couldn’t imagine myself doing that! I am more of a serious type and playing with the crowd is difficult to do. But as they sent the script 2 days before the event, and my name being written on the Program already, I couldn’t chicken out anymore. I just set my mind and heart to the task at hand.
It turned out very well mind you. Since there were 7 of us, the parts were divided and I got to host the Boses ng Bayan twice and introduced and interviewed the performers plus the judges' comments a number of times.
Most of all, during the introduction of the hosts, we danced our way into the front by executing the different hand and foot techniques that our costumes represent. Thank goodness that our branch chose the Subanen tribe because what I did was only the step-half-half.
The whole event was very tiring- my jaw was numb from smiling and my feet and back were aching from always standing. But I am happy with what I did and would therefore like to give myself a little pat on the back for a job well done.
But I have a feeling that that won't be the last of my hosting career. And why not? It's fun to know that you can actually do something you have never done before. However, in order to feel relaxed at least for a change, I think I would just sit and watch the whole event next anniversary though.
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| SSS Pagadian Branch |
