THE ARIS SALARITAN DRIFT OF FATE------- Jenika Nero & Jeannel Lasquites

Aris(RIGHT) and her new found friends in Gr. 10 Fortitude.

 Photo by Jeanille Cogtas

                Life-changing moments, unexpected twists and turns of events, a new beginning—all because of that one certain day.

             Aris Mae Bascar Salaritan, a 16-year-old sophomore, had never even thought about taking the National Achievement Test, what gown she would be wearing during the Junior-Senior Promenade, nor her high school graduation yet. But when she took the Philippine Educational Placement Test (PEPT) last June 12, 2013, her life went in fast-forward motion, spinning and skipping particular events until finally landing in the Grade 10-Fortitude classroom. She soon found herself in a very unfamiliar environment surrounded by Grade 10 students whom she now consider classmates. Will she be able to cope with the fact that she will be wearing a dark blue toga by the end of March 2014 and a high school diploma at hand?

        PEPT is not an ordinary exam. Before deciding whether to take it, one must consider the following possibilities: you may accelerate, stay in the same grade, or even go back to a lower level. You may have been aiming to fly high into a warm blue sky, but you’ll never know until you realize you forgot to have an airplane to get there. Life is incomplete without a bit of difficult challenges and tough risks and Aris wasn’t scared of these. Knowing that an opportunity was right in front of her, she grabbed it without second thoughts and because of her determination, she got to reach the stars.

The start of something totally new also meant leaving the past behind. Even though the sudden yet overwhelming news was one of the greatest things that happened to Aris, she had to make some hard sacrifices. One of which was being unable to hang out with her Sophomore best friends as much anymore. Seemingly cutting the very strong bond that they had since their freshman years was too much for her to handle so Aris made sure that she was with the sophomores when she had the time. Due to her shy personality, she also doesn’t have that much confidence to talk with her classmates and batch mates (unless you talk to her first). “She’s happy, but not really happy, because she misses her friends.” Dave Raganas, one of her new classmates, said in an interview. “She is very quiet; she needs to boost her confidence. She jams with us actually, she’s just really shy.” she added.

Dr. Francesca T. Kilag, ACT-ISD principal, was very pleased when she heard about this huge announcement. “Just like her parents, I am also very proud of Aris for passing the exam. Imagine accelerating from Grade eight to Grade 10! That’s very amazing,” she said. “Out of all the students who took the test, she was the only one who passed! And to think she’s from ACT really makes us so proud of her.”

What took years for the Seniors to be where they are, only took her hours in an exam to be in the exact same place. Her story may not have caught your eye, but we can never deny the fact that she did an outstanding job at the Philippine Educational Placement Test.

Congratulations to you, dear Aris!