The Promdi Girl’s Dream: A Story of Redirection From a Profession to Vocation and a Testament of God’s Perfect Timing (My Introductory Post)

Hello, everyone!

I would like to thank you for giving my very first post a read. My name is Mariel L. Lipa. You can call me Yel. HeyMariel, will be my go-to place to share my thoughts and experiences without being judged. This post contains how my life was redirected and has become a living testimony of God’s perfect timing.

The Beginning of Promdi Girl’s Dream
I call myself a promdi girl, which means a simple girl from the province here in the Philippines. I have a big dream of becoming a successful accountant. Besides my dream profession, I also have the ambition to be enrolled in the school where my successful cousins graduated. So, I took the entrance exam to the school I dreamed of. Imagine it was the only school I took an entrance exam! No back up school if I ever failed! And guess what? I luckily passed!

Failed Dreams and the First Redirection
To my disappointment, though, my score did not meet the cutoff score for my dream course. My young mind had been disappointed, but little did I know life has something better planned for me.
And since, I don’t want to give up my dream school, I stayed. I slowly accepted the fact that my dream of becoming an accountant is not for me. I ended enrolling an education course which I actually tried to avoid. My mother is a teacher so I know what it looks like, and how life is when I become a teacher. But life is really is full of surprises. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise for me. The path I took was instrumental for me to find a group of friends that I will forever cherish. They became my family away from home. They made my college days memorable and challenges bearable. Together we made it to graduation, and with Latin honors at that!

After graduation, we took the Licensure Examination for Teachers and just like another friendship goal, we all passed. Another shared victory for us!

**
First Job and Lockdowns**
I made my first job at the university I graduated. I worked as a research assistant to a clinical psychologist, who was our thesis professor. I enjoyed the work since my co-workers are some of my classmates back in college. I felt contented and happy like nothing is going bad to happen. Until, pandemic happened. I went for a vacation to my boyfriend’s province and I was stuck there when lockdowns were announced. I could not return home.

My mother was so worried believing I was busy with work and it’s the reason I can’t come home. My birthday came, the Christmas and NewYear’s day passed and still I was always giving excuses and alibis. I was so guilty. Until my turning point came. I got pregnant.

The Turning Point and Another Redirection to Redemption
I am tired of lying and giving excuses and my conscience is eating me already. The inevitable happened, I mustered my courage and told them the truth. Anger, betrayal, disappointment name all other negative emotions there is, I saw it in my family’s faces. It was the most difficult moment in my life. When borders were opened and lockdowns were lifted, I immediately booked my plane ticket and went home. Despite the hurt and disappointment, what came after brought me to tears, LOVE. My family visited me in the quarantine facility, brought me food and gave me the things I needed. I felt their love. Their grace and patience during that time became my source of strength and redemption.

God’s Perfect Timing
I was five months pregnant when my mom urged me to apply in the Department of Education in our province. She said I should make use of my teaching license. I hesitated due to my situation, but with less expectation and a lot of encouragement from my family, I submitted my pertinent papers. Surprisingly after sometime, my messenger kept on beeping from congratulatory message from friends and family members, I ranked 10 among the thousands of applicants and I can’t believe it. I did not see it coming. But later I realized it was all God’s plans. I was not rejected from my dream course. I was locked down not because I was punished from hiding a secret to my family. I was redirected to my real purpose. I was led to the path to be a teacher.

Finding my Real Purpose
Now, I teach multigrade classes. It was not easy but it is rewarding. Teaching the indigenous children from the marginalized communities of our country. From my first station to my current station now, which is already my third request for a transfer of station, I am still teaching multigrade learners. I have found my real purpose. This is where God has led me. And so I will do my best to serve the purpose He has showed me.

Finding Hive
Just as life has already showed me my purpose, God has yet another surprise for me. I stumbled upon miss @Antonette on Facebook. She became God’s instrument for me to discover Hive. She showed me how this platform works and helped me live one of my dreams of becoming a writer. She emphasized that authentic and original words will be greatly appreciated to which I have no problem at all because it’s my dream. And using my own photos and engaging with the community matters most. So, all the photos I indicated here are all mine and was only edited using Canva.

I’m now excited to being part of this community. I am much more excited to meet fellow writers who I can learn with, share with and grow with.

I will fill this new avenue of mine with real stories, raw emotions, and reflections from the promdi girl I used to be who has fallen, been lifted and now a teacher and a writer who continues to walk the path that God has laid out for me.
Thank you for reading this far. Have a nice day!