THE WRITING PROGRESS

Breaking the Beauty Myth: Mixing Odd Colors within a Traditional Canvas

TLE IDOL

Breaking the Beauty Myth: Mixing Odd Colors within a Traditional Canvas

“I’m proudly representing the section of an element with symbol Se, atomic number 34, atomic mass 78.96- Selenium!”

They don’t need no disco lights, as candidate number 23 dropped the introduction like a bomb, leaving the crowd with no choice but cheer and clap as if they’re on the dance floor. With great posture, beauty queen smile and a feminine heart, Albert Bernardo is but a living proof that the era is changing and so should a traditional school-based pageant.

Pause, grab a popcorn, and watch as the most ‘unusual’ and ‘unconventional’ students own the runway of Bunsuran National High School.

Winning is a big piece of cake
Sugar, spice, and five cups of extra rice?! Combine them all together and you’ll get the heaviest contender for the night, literally. Proud and loud, this fearless girl swayed her hips to the Finals all the while being unashamed for her body, the kind that is considered ‘taboo’ or ‘unacceptable’ to normal beauty competitions.
“Hindi bale nang matalo, basta busog! (I’d rather lose than be hungry)”, she claimed and caught the humor and interest of the onlookers.

Tall, dark and triumphant
Confident is the new ‘guwapo’.
Jose Emanuelle Santos, TLE Idol Week 1 and Mr. Campus Teen Idol, is a living embodiment of that statement. Coming all the way from STI, he transferred to BNHS this school year on his 12th year and made it worthwhile. With unwavering support from his classmates and mother, he successfully bagged the fore mentioned awards amidst of the criticism thrown at him by some schoolmates. As a quote that is circulating the internet says, ”If your goal is to achieve your dreams, you have to be deaf to negative things.”

To All the Voice He Lost Before
It is not only ABS-CBN or FPJ Productions that has a ‘Panday”, BNHS too! What’s better than a superhero sword smith? You’re right, a singing one. Meet Flavio Jose Ruel Mahayahay, candidate number fourteen. He started off as a simple social media user uploading covers of songs in his Facebook account. It eventually led his classmates into sacrificing him to be their section’s representative. Often labeled as ‘Panday’ by higher year levels and faculty staff, Flavio is a neophyte to the beauty pageant held annually in line with the Nutrition Month Celebration. It is not only beginner’s luck that led him into taking home the Teen Idol Role Model award, Best in Techno-Attire award and 1st Runner Up. His ‘sidekicks’ are also to be credited. From selling seeds, planning and borrowing the attire, and putting make up, they got it all covered.

Oh, Juliet, Juliet! Where is thine confidence, Juliet?
Remember the shy girl all adorned in an intricate gown, with curls fanning her face? Remember when in the middle of the introduction of the contestants, she ran away? All the memories of that will surely be thrown into hindsight as at present times, she has no intention and capability of running away as the Campus Teen Idol crown is being placed atop her head. Wearing simple jeans, shirt and heels, she was awarded with layers and layers of sash indicating Best Modeling (Week 1 and 2), People’s Choice Award (Week 2), Best in Techno-Attire and Ms. Campus TLE Idol. Always the one with a strong statement and pleasing runway walk as an introduction, she now rules the stages she once ran away from. Her classmates didn’t lack on doing their part and cheered the loudest during the respective rounds of the pageant.
Two years ago, she was the runaway Juliet during the English Month Celebration Cosplay Competition. At this time, she is the Campus Teen Idol.

As if colorful tubes of paints, all forty candidates coming from different corners of the school came together to recolor a tradition of BNHS in celebrating the Nutrition Month. From being a conventional school pageant with conventional type of participants, it transformed into a melting pot of all shapes, sizes, personality and color of people, infinitely breaking the myth every pageant has been holding on to. You don’t have to be perfect to be beautiful. With a bow, they all exited the stage. It may be odd to the eyes of the common, but the smiles plastered on the faces of the students beg to differ.