With the pressure to perform both on and off the court, the life of a student athlete is definitely not easy. The same can be said about adjusting to a new city. While each is in itself a difficult hurdle to overcome, certain students are faced with the demanding task of handling both. Though Lasallian student-athletes come from all over the country, many have come from the Land of Promise, Davao City.
The LaSallian grasped the opportunity to listen to the stories of those who have made the jump to Taft Avenue such as Green Jin Immanuel Donato, Lady Archer Marga Dagdagan, DLSU Football’s Jed and Gelo Diamante, Yoshiharu Koizumi, and Nina Arietta, and Lady Tanker Dara Evangelista.
First impressions and adjusting to life in Manila
Davao is a melting pot of culture and diversity. As one of the mega cities in the Philippines, the athletes believe that there is a difference in terms of culture as compared to the cities in Metro Manila. The group points out that Davaoeños are known to be disciplined and conservative.
Moving away from home is not an easy feat, as the hustle and bustle of life in the metro can be intimidating and scary at times. Some of the athletes adjust well to the city life, but others take more time to settle in.
G.Diamante says that he had an easier time adjusting to life in Manila through the help of his older brother Gio. He shares that he was ready for the move since his brother already gave him some key tips. “’Di masyado naging mahirap sa akin yung transition from Davao to Manila. Yun lang nga, napansin ko na mas fast yung pace dito and I looked at it positively. I was looking at it as a new adventure where I’d learn a lot.”
“Culture shock. It took a while din to adjust and to blend with the people,” Donato explains. Most of the athletes present agreed that adjusting was not as easy as they initially thought it would be. Through the support of family, teammates, and friends, they were able to do so after some time.
Dagdagan of the DLSU Lady Archers points out, “Una, nagulat ako sa language ng mga tao. Kahit Tagalog, iba yung sa Davao, and then the environment, ganun, polluted dito.” Lady Tanker Evangelista shares similar sentiments to Dagdagan, saying, “Iba yung loud nung Bisaya. Dapat careful ako sa words ko kasi baka magiging offensive.”
Strength and support of family
Family is one of the best sources of strength and inspiration for Filipinos. The athletes interviewed, without hesitation, gave their respective families credit for their support. While most had to leave them behind in Davao, Evangelista, Donato, and Koizumi were lucky to have their families uproot their lives and move to Manila to support their dreams. Furthermore, Arietta and the Diamante brothers have siblings and relatives currently living in Manila.
“Living away from our parents, it’s hard kasi diba, usually sanay kami na nandiyan sila. Pero at least ngayon, they can still show their support through constantly calling and texting us,” describes J. Diamante.
The blues of missing home
Arietta opens up first, saying, “I really miss my little brother and my mom and dad.” G. Diamante adds, “The time you spend with your parents every Sunday or after school. Actually, yung family time lang.” Family in the forms of parents, siblings, and even friends are just some of the things student athletes leave back home. Even with technological advancements making communicating with loved ones far away easier, there really is a difference from having them physically present.
“Food!” Dagdagan immediately says, when asked what she missed most, aside from family, and most of the athletes could not disagree. Simplicity, pace, environment, and the beaches in Davao were some of the honorable mentions, but it was really the delicacies that the athletes missed most about home.
Possible regrets
While they are all glad to be representing the Green-and-White, each still have those moments in which they question whether moving to the country’s capital was indeed the correct choice. Dagdagan explains, “Hindi naman araw-araw masaya dito. May times din na stressful ang training at school. Pero yun yung mga times ako nag-reregret na dito na ako nag-aral.”
Collectively, though, they all believe that in the end, the move will be worth it, because not only will they grow as athletes, but as people. “Our parents always told us to aim for big goals, big opportunities. So I think it’s really a blessing for us to be able to study here,” G. Diamante said.
When asked whether there was a specific moment that stood out to them in their respective stints in Manila, they all echoed one another. They all agree that just seeing and being at DLSU everyday has been a privilege for each and every one of them. “The school. When I first went inside La Salle during my first day. My gosh, ito yung dream school,” adds Evangelista. Donato’s words also reflected the feelings of the group. “The quality of education, high quality training, and [our] dream school.”
Message to other athletes
G.Diamante, however, wants to leave future student-athletes this message: “Know your priorities, always remember where you come from, and always listen to your parents when nag-papauwi na.”
As to what they can say to other Davaoeños looking to make the same decision, G. Diamante continues, “The greatest step in the transition between high school and college is really the school you choose.” He elaborates, explaining, “From transferring from any province to Manila, wag kayo matakot, kasi yeah, there will be a transition phase where in maga-adjust kayo, but it won’t be that hard.” Evangelista further shares, “You could always go back to the comfort of your home but siyempre, the wider your circle is, the more experience, the bigger your world is.”
