05/08/2025
𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 | 𝐁𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬: 𝐌𝐬. 𝐀𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐚’𝐬 𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐂 𝐉𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑴𝒔. 𝑨𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒂 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝑹𝑶𝑻𝑪, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏: 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕. But beneath those words, a voice stirred inside her—a yearning to learn, to feel the weight of the rifle in her palm, and to protect our beloved country. Inspired by the movies she watched as a child and driven by her father's unfulfilled dream, she envisioned herself wearing the uniform he never had the chance to wear.
With barely a week or two to prepare, Ms. Aballa was thrown into a physical conditioning and a series of video submissions required by the officer-in-charge. These videos showed her doing push-ups, sit-ups, running, and other demanding exercises. Her body ached. The pace was brutal. And with so little time to train, no one would have blamed her if she gave up.
𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕.
Somehow, even in the middle of the sweat and struggle, she found herself enjoying it. There was something about the challenge that spoke to her, something about the discipline that lit a fire inside her. She fell in love with the process, not because it was easy, but because it taught her things about herself she wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. Every difficult drill became more than just a test of strength; it became a lesson in who she was becoming.
“𝙆𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙙 𝙨𝙖 𝙠𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙙, 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙜𝙖𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙖 𝙠𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙮𝙖𝙣.” This ROTC mantra became both a challenge and a source of strength for Ms. Aballa. At camp, she was surrounded by strangers—people from different backgrounds, cultures, and personalities. Socializing didn’t come naturally for her, but through time, she learned to adapt, connect, and embrace the unity that the program fosters. Despite the differences, she discovered a sense of family among her fellow cadets—a bond stronger than blood. “𝙆𝙖𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙖 𝙢𝙤 𝙣𝙜𝙖 𝙨𝙖 𝙠𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙮𝙖𝙣, 𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙩 𝙢𝙤 𝙖𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣,” she added.
There were moments she considered quitting. The time away from her family and special someone, and the sheer weight of responsibility, almost pushed her to give up. While her special someone encouraged her to give up, it was her family’s unwavering support that reminded her to finish what she had already started.
Still, the exhaustion wore her down. The thought of quitting became more tempting each day.
But just when she was about to give in, it was the friendships she had formed in ROTC that kept her grounded. “𝙋𝙖𝙜 𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞 𝙠𝙖 𝙩𝙪𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙤𝙮, 𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞 𝙠𝙖𝙢𝙞 𝙩𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙡𝙤𝙮,” a friend told her.
Those words that made her pause and rethink everything. In that moment, it wasn’t just discipline or duty that kept her going, it was the loyalty and strength she found in her ROTC family that gave her the courage to stay and continue.
Her transformation didn’t go unnoticed. Her family and friends saw how much she had changed. And she felt it too. ROTC molded her into a stronger version of herself: someone who stands firmly on her own, someone who could shoulder responsibilities, and someone who learned how to master her emotions. Her perspective deepened, her knowledge broadened, and her patience stretched further than ever before.
"𝘼𝙘𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙘𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙍𝙊𝙏𝘾" she stated. The program, she added, wasn’t just about physical training—it became her motivation to push forward no matter how difficult it goes. It became a teacher that guided her not only in service, but in excellence.
𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒎𝒆𝒏, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒐𝒕𝒚𝒑𝒆𝒔 — thanks to her 𝙠𝙖-𝙗𝙪𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨, who treated her as an equal from day one. one. But she did feel pressure during their training in Tarlac, watching women execute push-ups with ease, exercises she still struggled to master. Instead of shrinking from the challenge, she asked for tips and pushed herself harder.
And during the physical fitness test, she did it.
She credited her success not just to the advice she received, but to the adrenaline and determination that surged through her — the fire that said, “𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨.”
Throughout her days in campo, Ms. Aballa only had one goal: 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙧 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩.
Recognition never lingered in her thoughts.
But, during graduation, her name rang through the halls. She was declared as Top 3 among the 295 Cadets in Region III during the ROTC Summer Camp Training and ROTC Academic Phase Training.
She was stunned.
Through ROTC, she learned to be resilient—to stand unshaken in the face of challenges, to fight not just with her body, but with her will. But the deepest lesson she learned?
𝑵𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒌𝒂-𝒃𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒔.
No matter how tough the road is, even in the face of death- she vowed to never leave them behind.
“𝙏𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙠 𝙤𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚.”
That’s Ms. Aballa’s message to those uncertain about joining ROTC. For her, college life would not be complete without the lessons, struggles, experiences, and triumphs the program gave her.
To any woman who may be doubting herself, Ms. Aballa wants you to remember:
“𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒕.”
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𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗯𝘆: Mischa Nicole Magsanoc, The Ledger Contributor—Feature Writer, and;
Anne Erich Alejo, The Ledger Contributor—Editorial Writer
𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗯𝘆: Shanele Vicencio, The Ledger Editor-in-Chief
