What many don’t realize about the Ateneo is that one of its greatest assets is the sheer beauty of the Loyola Heights campus. No one ever goes on a campus tour and takes a second look at the trees surrounding the buildings. I certainly didn’t think any of that. But four years into this whirlwind experience of an Atenean education, I’ve looked in the evergreen for solace amidst the endless list of deadlines and deliverables.
However, this wasn’t always something I was accustomed to doing. I was a usual restless freshman who put too much on my plate and stressed out whenever I wasn’t working on something. Back then, during one of the lowest points in my academic life, all I could think about was the irony in the setting; the serenity despite the chaos of my midterm remarks.
Dela Costa Hall was a particularly traumatic icon in my memory. Countless times, I would be pacing by Red Brick Road, anxiously anticipating my reaction to another below-par assessment from the legendary Maximino Pulan, Jr. for EnLit or something even worse from the remarkable Allan Popa for FIL 11. I’d walk out of the building dazed and demoralized, aimlessly wandering but my mind racing with panic.
However, once I settled into college life and got used to the constant stress that it came with, it became easier to hit pause despite swimming in a sea of requirements. Instead of rushing from the library to my classes, I’d walk at a snail’s pace, appreciating the sights and sounds along the way.
Suddenly, maximizing my time was no longer constantly nagging my mind. I started to appreciate how a calm mind can set the tone for productivity. When my mind gets ahead of me, that’s when I realize it’s time to slow down and take short look at the fountain outside and watch as passersby walk out and into the library, hurriedly or unconcerned. When I’m about to write a paper but find my fingers hovering over my keyboard for a good two minutes, that’s when I know it’s time for a break. With my earphones on, I set out to SOM Forest and take a short five-minute walk.
As I look at the trees that surround me, my eyes are led up 5-storeys high towards the web of branches and rustling leaves. The hot sunlight filters through the leaves to produce an explosion of green that hangs over me, giving the gears in my mind a much needed reboot.
The Loyola Heights campus has been such a comforting space that I started to look forward to coding days where I would wake up at 6:00 AM to go to school and leave only at 8:00 PM. Aside from needing the time to get work done, there’s something about seeing a usually packed place subdued in silence.
Through negotiations mediated by horns and lights, I make my way out of the merging traffic and a few minutes later, I’m past Gate 3.0 and inside Ateneo with a few minutes to spare. My 25-minute drive to school is as pleasant as Manila driving can get, but upon reaching University Road, along the North Carpark, I’m greeted by an array of scenic views that eases my clenched shoulders and relaxes my restless mind. To the right is a beautiful shot of the trees decorating Red Brick Road and to the left is an empty North parking lot—and if I’m honest, I can’t decide which I’m happier to see.
As I turn the corner, the Gesu assumingly imposes itself, glimmering with traces of golden hour light. Time runs slow despite the hustle and bustle of cars racing to the elementary campuses. When I make my way to a deserted Red Brick Road, my mind, flustered from rushing to school is immediately put at ease in the backdrop of an unmoved scene.
Walking in Ateneo is such an underrated experience. How many times have I complained about having a Bellarmine class? But with another two weeks worth of early mornings and late nights in the Rizal Library looming, a walk around Ateneo’s sprawling greens is the only thing that will keep me going (aside from Netflix) during the madness of midterm season.
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