Where I spent my weekend

I recently went to a Vocation Festival (VocFest) organized by Diocese of Imus at Rogationist College. I love going to gatherings like this, not because I am not sure with my vocation yet, but more to celebrate and listen to new approaches on encouraging the youth to discern their vocation.

When I saw the schedule of activities, it was fixed but exciting. During the orientation that started late morning, I thought to draw on my notebook to save myself from falling asleep. I was in dire need of sleep because I felt tired the whole week. And so, here are some of the highlights of the festival through my childlike sketches with graphite. Anyway, I just love drawing but quite not good at it.

 

The first sketch was Fr. Orlie giving us a run over of what would happen and what to expect. One of my friends who saw that I was drawing, grabbed my notebook and added the bubble with the word "Never." He told me that he heard too many "Never" when Fr. Orlie referred to some rules to follow. Lesson: Try as much to use positive statements for rules, because sometimes, the audience only remembers Nevers and Do-nots.

 

Next was Fr. Caloy who explained the house rules. He was bubbly and used jokes to keep the audience listening. People went on laughing when he was talking.

 

I drew this spotlight right before the lights went out to give way to Lucenarium. It was quite solemn and peaceful. We sang some hymns and uttered some prayers.

 

We were singing these lines when we lined up the lit candles in front. I find this song comforting.

 

We listened to some inspirational talks by a well-known priest and a single lady. They both talked about how youth should manifest holiness in their lives. When Ms. Marisol (second guest speaker, I'm not sure with her name) talked about holiness, most participants started to leave the gym and went somewhere else. They left in groups and some even lay down and slept while she was talking. What struck me was that she just kept on talking with the people who were still listening and did not falter even when the audience nearly halved.

 

These were the main highlights of Ms. Marisol's talk and Service part was my favorite.

 

This is my last sketch. After the talks, the activities needed solemnity so I opt not to sketch anymore.

I think I learned much from this year's VocFest compared to the others that I attended. Maybe because I chose to listen and be more receptive to what was going on, instead of wandering around and looking for fun stuff. Except for the part when I slept at the tent because I was too sleepy. Nevertheless, I can say that I listened and participated in most parts. After all, I went there for vocation discernment.

I would love to post here some of what I have learned from the event, especially from the Congregation tour. But for now, I'd leave you with this.

Some friends and I who attended the event

God bless you! ♡