ZOOM MEETING BY THE BEACH

TAKING virtual backgrounds to the extreme? This teacher did it to prove a point.

Photos of a 24-year-old instructor from Bolinao town is currently making rounds on social media after his photograph, attending a Zoom conference, was set on a beach!

Allen Cambil, a senior high school teacher at Dr. Carlos S. Lanting College in Quezon City, said he and his friends Patricia Lamsen and Fern Abalona went to Bolinao to visit his parents when they decided to unwind at the Racniel Beach Resort in Barangay Ilog-Malino.

Then, while at the beach, he was called to a zoom meeting. And he did with style. He set up his chair and table, opened his laptop, and attended the online conference by the beach shoreline.

The people he met online were awed by Cambil’s background. His friends decided to take a photo of him, and posted it online. The rest is history.

Little did they know that Cambil’s photo has a story behind it.

 Cambil, like many other youngsters living in a remote town, dreamed of making it big in Metro Manila. His mother is a housewife, his father  a carpenter.

He grew up in Bolinao for 15 years and after graduating from high school, he asked for his parents’ blessing to set on a journey in Metro Manila. Being the only child, they reluctantly agreed.

He had such high hopes, but reality slapped him in the face so hard, he almost turned back. But he did not give up. He continued and supported himself.

He took a job as a dish washer, until he was able to save up to resume his studies, to pursue his Bachelor of Technical Education Major in Automotive Technology at the Valenzuela City Polytechnic College that allowed him to study for free. After earning his degree, he worked temporarily as a special account analyst in a motor company to save up some more to be able to take the Licensure Examination for Teachers in 2017. He passed.

He is now in the teaching profession for two years, teaching personal development, automotive subjects, entrepreneurship, and computer hardware to his students, both in Grades 11 and 12.

 Cambil said he was already thinking of staging a zoom meeting by the beach when his office superiors called. When time was set, he hurriedly got into his father’s polo and slacks for the meeting. What was he thinking by staging that zoom meeting by the beach?

He said he intended the photo to be a source of simple joy, a passing entertainment. His theme was about how a teacher is willing to do something uncanny, something people would frown upon, just to be able to reach out to students in need.

“I want to show students on how determined teachers are, na kahit mahirap, you would make it to the point na you could find ways to deliver and for them to learn something”, said Cambil.

He wanted his students not to be fearful of things pressing them down. He wants everyone to do everything they can to pursue their dreams.

“I want them to feel free about the things what they want to relay or do, especially pagdating sa learning, yung humahanap ng paraan na maaaring gawin hanggang walang mali, gawin mo. pursue it”, he said.

The photo was a mimicry of his life — a glimpse of hope and positivity behind a life full of struggle and pain.

And of course, while you’re being bludgeoned to death by the thug called life, don’t forget to stop by the beach. (Ahikam Pasion)

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments