"Although the end may seem near, and a cadet may slack off, we are reminded that the yearling if ever he turns into a cow can easily rot and waste his training with his own overconfidence by reaching what he may think is near the finish line. All is not over."
-Cadet Trainee 1st Class, Vincent Aureus
Chapter 7: Cadet Captain
Right now, people would tell me that my journey is finished. I've finished my Cadet Officer Candidacy Course, and the struggles have ended. I would reply back with a simple "No," and move on, thinking that these people may be too shallow to grasp my explanation, or that the said explanation would be too long to keep them entertained, because when I talk about a part of my life, especially something as significant as this, I'd like to explain it in as much detail as possible, so as not to exploit possible misinterpretations by the audience.
As of June 2009, I am now Corps Adjutant and Cadet Captain Espadero. It wasn't the kind of induction I had hoped (Adjutant Yucoco just told us somewhat informally during one of our meetings minutes before being presented to the whole batch) but it was an honor. I'm quite disappointed that I was not able to attain the designation of Corps Commander, but I still got what I wanted as a second.
Here are our current positions:
Corps Commander and Cadet Major Lorenzo Miguel Samonte
ExecutiveOfficer and Cadet Captain Jason Patrick Martinez
Corps Adjutant and Cadet Captain Joseph Wihelm Espadero
Logistics Officer and Cadet Captain Melandro Lopez
Intelligence Officer and Cadet Captain Michael Brilliantes II
Operations Officer and Cadet Captain Deriq David
Logistics Officer and Cadet Captain Melandro Lopez
I'm disappointed with Adjutant Yucoco and Commandant Santos for choosing Samonte as Commander based on seniority alone. Sure, he was in the COCC the longest, but quality over quantity any time. I guess it's also a big plus when he always sucks up to "The Man" every chance he gets.
So what does an "Adjutant" do? Basically, he is the face and the voice of the officers, directly commanding the cadets. I'm fine with the officers taking over my job once in a while, but Jason Martinez always insists that he command the cadets. Obviously he likes the spotlight. I'm quite peeved by that, but I let him do what he wishes anyway.
I haven't seen Retired Cadet Colonel Rendor or Retired Cadet Lieutenant Colonel Thomas ever since. I saw some of the retired Master Sergeants and 2nd Lieutenants, but I'm really interested to see how he will react to our being officers already. Taking advantage of our not-anymore-so-professional relationship, I added him as a contact in the social networking webite, Facebook. Sure enough, he accepted my invitation request. Seeing his images, wall posts, and comments, one can hardly find a trace of his days as a CAT officer. He (literally) outgrew his 3x4 white side wall military haircut and leads a very jolly life. As for the others, I heard they're doing just as well and grew just as much hair too. Occasionally they come back to the High School and check out how the CAT is doing. A talk with them about things of the yesteryear would always take place every time they pass by. Those who used to punish me with intense physical training are now my good friends. Besides, they would always remind us last year that whatever they made us do is "nothing personal."
This year, the effects of the slow demilitarization of the Ateneo cadet Corps can clearly be seen. The maximum amount of physical training we, the officers, can give is merely nothing compared to last year, and the CAT is more focused in being a righteous citizen than a disciplined man trained in the military ways.
It feels good to be an officer, mainly because it's what I worked so hard for. People sometimes harmlessly tease me about my being an officer, but it's fine as long as they don't go overboard. During CAT time held every Friday after classes, I do my usual roaming around the classrooms and stop by mine to watch how my classmates are doing under Cadet Trainee 3rd Class Aquino, a member of the NCOCC (Non-Commissioned Officer Candidacy Course). My classmates happen to form the noisiest class in the whole batch, during and outside of CAT. Sometimes I get a kick out of it whenever they joke around, and sometimes I tell them enough is enough.
I now handle the next batch of the members of the COCC, while the others handle the Medics, Air Police, NCOCC, and Honor Guards. It is my job to shape them up into formidable officers for next year. They would have to be as physically, mentally, and psychologically strong as we are, perhaps even more, to lead next year.
My journey isn't over. With the way things are going, I hope it will never be. The Saga lives on.
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