Salamat, The Freeman!

Mga lima gyud ka tawo ang nangutana nako niadtong Huwebes, kun nahibalik na ba ko sa Cebu. Of course! Kay dili gyud mahimo nga wala ko sa pagsaluog na sa The Freeman Newspaper sa iyang centennial birthday. Dinhi gyud ko nahimong Ryan Mark. Walay Ryan Mark karon kun walay The Freeman Newspaper.

Apan kinsa gyuy magdahom nga magdugay gyud ko dinhi. Dos tres (2.3) akong grado sa journalism subject sa masscom school sauna. Bisa’g 3.0 pa to, dili ra gyud ko malain kay I grew up knowing nga broadcasting gyud akong gusto ug love. After college, nakatrabaho ko sa kaniadtong Bantay Radyo isip city hall reporter. But after a year of doing it, I got bored and hungered for more challenge.

So, ni-apply ko sa The Freeman Newspaper diin gipa take ko og exam sa HR. I tell you, mahagbong jud ko ana nga type of exams. In fact, sa guidance subjects nako before, ang dako ra jud nako nga score was about decision making. The rest, mahagbong jud ko ana. So nahagbong jud ko sa exam sa Freeman HR. Lain sab kaayo’g mupasar ko’g kalit. Pakkk!

But my saving grace was the written exam handled by the editorial department. Fire alarm man tong story. Gipa arrange ra gud ang details to come up with a news item. So nakapasar tawon ko. Pakpak!

My first assignment was as justice beat reporter.Wala kaayo ko nakauyon didto, so nagpabalhin ko sa general beat. Dili sab ko effective didto, so nihangyo ko sa kanhi news editor namo sauna nga si Queenie Bronce nga magpabalhin ko sa defense beat. Nangutana gyud siya: Sure ka? Mga isog ra pwede diha. Without thinking, I said yes!

And the rest is history. Nilungtad gyud ko og five years as defense beat  reporter. I liked everything there. The different kind of stories I got to cover for five years got me very excited. Daghan kaayo ko og nakat-onan didto. Makaingon gyud ko nga hardcore journalist gyud ko.

Gumikan sa The Freeman, I enjoyed the best of both worlds for two years. Yes, kay I  was Ryan P. Borinaga the defense beat reporter, and Ryan Mark , the entertainment columnist. The Freeman made me discover what I can and can’t do. I learned discipline and multi-tasking. It made me patient and resourceful.

Of course, no relationship is perfect. Mag-away man gani ang magkadugo, kita pa ba. So, naa sab juy times uy nga musumpaki sab ta, musukol sab jud ta’s mga amo. Pakkk! Eighteen years na sab ko diri uy. Lain sab kaayo’g bed of roses lang. Aww!

But hello, my I would always stick with the The Freeman Newspaper through thick and thin. Sa kalipay ug kasakit, makigyayong ko. Kun dili na nila kinahanglan akong serbisyo, mupahilayo ra sab ko nga dili magbagutbot. Ana lang gud. I will always be grateful to the The Freeman Newspaper wherever I will be and whatever I will become. Kay husto si sir Dodong Gullas, wala ko karon kun hain man gani ko nahimutang ug unsay akong naabot kun walay The Freeman Newspaper. Happy 100th birthday. Thank you so much.