11/06/2026
The Final Lap: The Girl Who Defined Her Own Rhythm
A quiet kind of exhaustion sets in for the innocent girl as she has to carry more than her frail shoulders can bear. On those late nights where everyone is sleeping peacefully, her soul and mind jog through the abyss of life’s uncertainty, searching for meaning amid the chaos of challenges she faces.
For the longest time, the world only saw the distance that she could run—not the wavering rhythm of her stride. While other kids had the luxury of running around to play, she spent her early years keeping up with the steep demands of life, growing up too fast for her age.
She was that young girl standing on the sidelines of her own life, witnessing how she ran away from the comfort of everything towards her papa; her purpose.
Tanya Aguirre, Editor-in-Chief of The Technopacer - Talisay, is now on her final lap as a BS Psychology graduate of Carlos Hilado Memorial State University. Yet, she remains grounded as she looks back on her first year, where she provided for herself through the commissions she earned from her work and tutoring kids around her neighborhood after class. By her side was her father, who was also trying his best to provide a life for the both of them.
“It was Psychology ang nagtudlo sa akon not to hate people,” she credited as she reminisced the bitterness of her early years, when she had every reason to turn her back on the world. Yet, the course she had never even considered in the first place came—teaching her to understand people, giving her reason to love them.
“Little did I know, maybe cold man gid ko sa field sang Psychology because ng dira ko nalang narealize nga the people around me bala haw, they need someone like me,” she added, noting that she also came to love Psychology due to her younger sibling who had Severe Autism.
She further hopes that Psychology students would understand the real purpose of its existence; “[…] All the awards nga mabaton mo, medals, trophy, certificates, title, amo na. They’re just bonus sa imo nga life. […] You’re not dealing with things lang, […] but you’re dealing with people. You’re helping people, you will be the one to care for people, you will be the one to listen.”
Tanya also never planned to join the publication during her freshman year; nonetheless, through encouragement, she submitted her application during the extended period of the hiring season. She was hopeless with her application, she admitted, as the news of her being accepted as the publication’s Feature Writer came as a shock. It became a stepping stone for her journey as a student journalist, leading her to serve as the Literary Editor, Managing Editor, and finally, the Editor-in-Chief of The Technopacer - Talisay.
“For the TP, i-love gid ya dapat ang TP. Indi gid ya pagpabay-an because TP has been through a lot. Damo nga tawo ang naghibi for the pub, may ginsacrifice for the pub,” she hoped as she waved goodbye to her position as the Editor-in-Chief.
“[…] Indi lang gid nila pagpabay-an ang TP, nga they will love TP not just as a pub, nga indi lang tungod nga responsibilidad nila. Everytime magwork sila sa pub may hugot sila nga ‘this is for TP,’” she added.
For four years, she ran in-between offices and classrooms as she navigated through her academic and publication duties.
For four years, she endured everything silently.
And yet, for four years, she was there for everyone. She stayed.
She was there from the beginning, when the publication had almost nothing—no equipment of its own and no proper facility to cater to the staff. But she never wavered; she took the initiative as she lined up documents to be approved with one thought in mind: that all of it is for the publication.
“Let’s know our why. Why we started,” she quoted.
As she looked back to those years, she only has one thing in mind: she wouldn't have been able to make it to the end of the line without the people who stayed, who became her reason—her friends, her younger sibling, the kids in her neighborhood that she used to tutor, and most importantly, her dearest father.
“Hold tight, because we’ll get there,” is her message to her freshman self, signifying that despite all the odds that she ran through and the mountains of challenges she faced, she could conquer them.
In the end, Tanya remained grounded as she gave her utmost trust to the people with whom she shared her journey.
Now, she stands at the uphill peak of her brutal marathon, a triumphant conqueror of the unknown beyond. She’s no longer the little girl who had to carry more than her frail shoulders could bear, the little girl who had to search the abyss of uncertainty for meaning, or the little girl who stood on the sidelines watching her life slipping away.
She is now the girl who the world witnesses defining her own rhythm, leaving behind a legacy deeply etched into the very walls of The Technopacer - Talisay as their Editor-in-Chief.
Feature | Julieane Norine Cuenca
Layout | Marl Azriel Adorio
