This is the short speech that Ms. Aimee A. Apolinario delivered during the High School general assembly last August 2, 2005.

      Good morning. For those of you who have been visiting the school website, you have probably noticed that the Xavier Golden Jubilee countdown clock ticks somewhere at the bottom of the page. Why is there such a clock? There are many reasons, but I will only name a few. One, it signals our anticipation for the event and two, it gives us an idea of how much time we have time left to prepare for the Golden Jubilee.

      Somewhere next month, the first of the “ber” months, you will probably start counting down to Christmas, and much later another countdown will begin as summer approaches. Furthermore, for seniors begin their own as graduation day draws near.

      Why all these countdowns? I’d say it’s for anticipation and preparation.

      At this moment, perhaps some of us have our own countdowns in anticipation and preparation for an event, yet how many of you realize that an important countdown should have been begun weeks ago? The countdown I am referring to is the one that will lead you to your first quarterly exam which is only a few days ahead. If you only realized this just now, then you must have also realized that it is time to step on the gas.

      Like any other countdown, this that leads to the exam week, is one that signals anticipation and preparation. Then comes in the question of how much you have been preparing for the end of this quarter.

      I shall not deal with telling you how you should prepare and when you should start preparing, but let me remind you that countdowns also tell us that time continues to fly even when we are unaware of it, and more often than not, at the end of the countdown, people say, “How time flies.”

      When this first quarterly test countdown ends what do you think will you say to yourself? What will you possibly feel? Relief – for at last exams are through? Or regret – for you know you should’ve studied harder than you did.

      Dear high school students, the countdown continues. Thank you and good morning.

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