At such a young age, eight-year-old Ayenne Samuelle Domingo wowed the audience with her perky performance. (CDN PHOTO/CRIS EVERT LATO)
Clasping her hands to her chest, 12-year-old Rjennie Arellano of Consolacion Central Elementary School was near tears as she waited for her turn to perform her declamation piece in front of a crowd of more than 100 people at the activity center of SM City Cebu.
The other six girls to her left and two girls to her right were equally nervous.
Some girls practiced their memorized pieces on their own or with their coaches. Some of them shared with each other the content of their pieces, how they practiced and who taught them to cry when their declamation piece required it.
Most of the girls were clad in costumes — pajamas, fairy wings, pretty dresses; and their props of fruits, baskets, gift boxes, blankets and utensils were sitting by the foot of their chairs.
In the audience were parents, teachers and fellow students who were eagerly waiting for the program to start.
Cheers filled the air as the first contestant of the oratorical contest, 16-year-old Jeffrey Daclan of Pardo National High School, was called onstage to deliver his piece.
Down the stairs, nine other high school students were seated; their sweaty palms and trembling voices both visible manifestations of the pressure they were feeling.
They were all determined to win, to bring pride to their school and go home with a plaque, a certificate and a P1,000 worth of gift certificates.
Most of the nineteen performers — nine elementary school pupils and 10 high school students — were first timers in performing in a mall, where people they had not seen before or perhaps will never meet again in their lives, watched them perform.
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“Every competition is a nerve-wracking experience for every parent,” said 33-year-old Jennifer Arellano, mother of Rjennie.
“My daughter has participated in many competitions but a mother will always feel nervous the moment she sees her daughter upstage. It never gets easy because you never know what will happen,” Arellano added.
In a tough competition with the top three performers getting very close scores, Rjennie’s delivery bested eight other contestants.
Her coach, Venus Pepito, was confident in her pupil’s performance.
“This is her first time to participate in a declamation contest although she has been a contestant in different contests such as extemporaneous speaking. I always tell her to practice, to pray, and to concentrate,” said Pepito.
Seated with the audience is Gie-Ann Baratas, the coach of Diornelyn. Baratas only picked their school’s representative at the last minute.
“We only had the weekend to practice because the student who was supposed to represent the school was absent. We were tight with schedule so we decided to pick Diornelyn. She did not disappoint,” said Baratas, 28, a teacher for seven years.
Diornelyn’s eloquent and fluid performance won first place in the oratorical contest category.
“It is my first time to ever participate in a competition outside of the school,” Diornelyn said.
“To be honest, it is really not the easiest task for a teenager to stand onstage, in front of many people, and speak. But I always believe that one of my missions in life is to spread the word of God and the piece I delivered talked about that,” she said.
Such were scenes of determination that gripped the young participants of a speech contest by Cebu Daily News during a Christmas Special at SM City Cebu last Wednesday, December 14.
Original pieces
All the pieces delivered in the contest were original pieces as this was one of the requirements set by CDN.
Diornelyn’s piece was called “Family is the Greatest Gift” and was written by her fellow students Hanelito D. Ponce and Kian C. Luaña.
“. . . (F)amily is the best and greatest gift you could ever wish for Christmas. It is a gift incomparable to those material ones, a free and priceless gift much more than the expensive ones and a gift that would definitely change your lonely Christmas to a joyful one because family completes everyone’s life,” the concluding statement of the piece says.
“Not A Single Centavo” was the original piece delivered by Rjennie, which made her win the top prize in the declamation contest.
It talked about Mrs. Maria dela Cruz, a public school teacher, who was selfless and generous to her students and family.
The piece was a reminder to everyone to share blessings daily and not just on Christmas.
All winners
Ayenne Samuelle Domingo of Babay 2 Elementary School may not have made it to the top three but the eight-year-old’s performance captured everyone’s hearts.
“We were all nervous but she kept on telling us to relax. ‘Don’t cry, don’t cry. It’s going to be okay’. She told us those comforting words. I can’t believe she is only eight. She talks like she’s 12,” said Rjennie.
Prior to the announcement of winners, Rjennie said she already felt like a winner because she formed friendships with the other girls.
“The friendship we formed here in the few hours we spent together is the best prize in this competition because only us can understand each other because we experience the same thing,” she said.
Apart from the oratorical and declamation contests, nine elementary and high schools were also awarded in the Christmas Decor-making Contest.
Subangdaku Elementary School claimed the top prize in the elementary category while Don Gerardo Llamera Ouano Memorial National High School won first prize in the high school category.
The event was sponsored by Global Business Power Corporation, Montebello Villa Hotel, Dimsum Break, and GT Cosmetics.