More than just a show

Last night, I watched Live AIDS with myGlobe officemates. Not everyone was from UP but there are very minimal requisites to appreciate Live AIDS:

1. love of fun
2. appreciation of gay sense of humor
3. a bit of knowledge of gay-speak and culture C TV and radio ads

I wasn't surprised to see UP Masscomm batchmates and friends onstage. A lot of the guys from my course were members of Samaskom.

So we cheered friends and showed moral support by being a cordial and lively audience.

On my part, it was sort of a relief to see old faces. And I did have some sense of pride that these people have already come so far in terms of their career, yet still know how to look back and support "homemade" activities.

And I realized why I always feel comforted when I attend shows and concerts in the university. It's a simple reminder for me of how we were raised back in college, how we dreamt of things, how we envisioned what was supposed to be ideal.

I was never part of the "tibak" community, but I did subscribe to most of the UP ideals - to loathe mediocrity, to consider life as an endless educational stint [thus the encouragement for all of us to pursue graduate and post-graduate studies, law or med school], to maintain the passion despite the complacency that we tend to get used to when we are already out there.

I'm glad that I didn't miss out on this year's Live AIDS. To see old friends. To breathe the old UP air.

It was a very simple reminder for me to continue questioning truths, despise the lack of vigor, to re-ignite my passion and what I used to believe in.

I didn't stop believing. I just had to be reminded to do so, once again.