Teacher and Learner at the Same Time… The Millenium Way

"That’s when I met Mrs. Minerva Barcena, an ALS teacher. We had some lessons for months before I took the exam at a testing center in Manabo, Abra. I waited for months for the result, and I remember how excited I was. I passed the exam, and it feels as though I passed the bar exam. There, I was an Alternative Learning System graduate batch of 2016. My energy and my confidence came back because, finally, I was able to complete my education. And what’s more, is that I was able to rejoin my previous batch, which was one of my concerns before.”

A life story of a young teacher who is spreading the gospel and eventually realized that it is never too late to start a new chapter -- just like meeting GOD and submitting all his life struggles and finally achieving his success.

"Perseverance draws sweetness out of adversity" is the quote that best describes the life story of Millenium. This young man belongs to the well-known de Aro siblings, famous not just for their extraordinary intelligence but for their meaningful names.

Born to Mr. and Mrs. Aquilino and Emily de Aro were five equally intelligent sons -- JUBILEE, JUDGEMENT, FREEDOM, MILLENIUM and PAIRIDEISOS. 

Jubilee’s name depicts the liberation from sin and death. And if you are aware of this, it pictures what's going to happen to the earth in the near future. And in the event, judgement would come first, as it represents judgement day. So there comes the name of the second son Judgement. After then, the earth will be given Freedom, and that freedom will only last a span of a thousand years, which is where the name Millenium comes from. After millennium years, the earth becomes paradise which is his youngest brother derived from- Pairideisos. Pairideisos is a combination of Assyrian and Greek words meaning “paradise.” 

Twenty-two-year-old Millenium from Bucay, Abra studied at Basbasa Elementary School where he graduated as a salutatorian. That made him decide to study at Abra high school, which is one town distant from his home, as a special science class. 

He was a consistent honor student. It was until he reached grade 9 that he had to stop his studies due to personal problems and health-related reasons. At first, it was just fine for him, but not until he saw himself being left off.

 It was September of 2016 and it is still vivid in my mind how I convinced the three young Jehovah’s Witnesses men walking around and preaching the gospel who did not finish their studies yet to enroll in ALS. 

“I remember that I was very determined not to continue my studies anymore. Because I imagined how embarrassing it would be for me if those younger ones were to be my classmates and my batchmates would already be ahead of me. At those times, I felt guilt, regret, and a combination of emotions. I had only a smidgeon of confidence too. But lucky for me, I became aware of ALS,” he said.

He added, “It’s been seven years, and a lot has changed. I had enrolled as a senior student at Gaddani National High School, and I graduated with flying colors. I was awarded high honors during recognition and graduation. Aside from the competitions I had won in the division and regionals, I also received special awards, like the Best in Entrepreneurship, Excellence Award, and Performing Arts. Then, later, after my graduation, I applied to work in the BPO industry in Baguio City as a customer service representative for an international account. During those times, I have also received a lot of incentives and awards, like being the Top Agent for consecutive months and being the Quality Assurance Ambassador. In addition, because of my hard work, I was transitioned to an airline account, where we book domestic and international flights. And on top of that, I was given an opportunity to handle supervisor calls. With the money I earned, I was able to buy a car for my family and build a room at home for myself. Apart from that, those experiences have given me invaluable experience that will surely benefit me in my future endeavors. After I resigned, I tried to enhance my writing skills by writing a variety of story genres. This has also kept me from becoming bored during the pandemic. I posted them up on the internet, and I didn't mind if there were only a few people who read them at first because writing had been an outlet for me through difficult times. Not until I realized I'd already been getting compliments and commissions, as well as proposals to write for different platforms. As a result, I took advantage of this opportunity to join other writing competitions in the region. One of them was when I won a poem writing contest about the environment under the management of the DENR. The next month, I won for an electronic slogan still under the DENR management. With the prize I received, I was able to purchase a computer for myself that I will use for my studies.”

Now, he is a home-schooled scholar sponsored by Jehovah’s Witnesses International studying computer science at an American-accredited online University in California. With a grateful heart he said, “All thanks to ALS because no creed, religion and colors stopped me ever in my ways to pursue my education. In addition to my academics, I am a university ambassador, which offers me the opportunity to work with people from all over the world and with a variety of organizations. I'm also working on my grades because I need to keep a specific GPA to keep my scholarship. This helped me realize that it’s not yet too late for everything. So, if you have dreams, go chase them. Before I sign out, I’d like to leave you with a quote by Alfred Adler: "Follow your heart, but take your brain with you." We’re still young and have a long way to go. You can rest for a while, if necessary, but don’t stop running the race,” he ended his testimony.