Konnichiwa Chronicles: Top Mark

When Mark told me that he got the scholarship in Japan two years ago, I greeted the news with equal amount of excitement and sadness. Excitement because I knew he would be doing the country proud and proving how great Filipinos are, but sad because he’d be leaving the country for a long-ish period of time. It was the same mix of emotions that D’ Frendz felt when Mona got her scholarship in Michigan.

Despite the excitement and sadness, one thing was clear in my mind. Mark would accomplish great things. Given his unbelievable talent in Math, his passion for learning, and his smarts – he had the complete formula for reaching the top of the class. He was definitely destined for “ichi-ban-ness.”

Two years has now passed, and my belief has been validated. Yesterday, I accompanied Mark to receive his Dean’s Certificate for being one of the top students in his graduating batch. After all the grades were ranked, he finished 3rd in the entire IR program. That’s no easy feat considering how difficult the program was. And is.



Congratulations, Mark! I never had a doubt that you’d hit the mark.