Pakikisama

I was known for pushing for integrity in exams.

And you can imagine that in many Philippine settings, pakikisama requires that you bend the rules.

But I thought that wasn't what pakikisama should be.

So at a young age, I was willing to face ostracism because I thought there had to be fairness in how merit is being considered, even in a public school system.

So at a young age, maybe I developed the sense of Being willing to pay the price.