Ang kuwento ng tagumpay ni Engineer Pompeii Nikolai Subingsubing, 27, tubong Cebu City, ay nagsimula muna sa kabiguan.
Ang pangarap talaga niya ay maging isang accountant.
Nagbigay ng pahintulot si Pompeii sa PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) sa pamamagitan ng Facebook Messenger noong July 12, 2022 para maibahagi ang kanyang kuwento.
Pagka-graduate ng high school ay nag-enroll siya sa accountancy program ng University of the Philippines Visayas Tacloban College.
Nang makumpleto niya ang second year, pagsapit ng summer ay kumuha siya ng qualifying exam—ang tinatawag na “make-or-break test” para makapag-major siya ng accountancy pagsapit ng third year.
Sa kasamaang palad, hindi siya nakapasa.
Pagbabahagi ni Pompeii ay dismayado siya sa naging resulta.
Nagduda umano siya sa kanyang sariling kakayahan, at tanong niya sa sarili: “Am I really that stupid?
“It made me question whether I would amount to anything much and if I was really never good enough.”
Isa aniya iyon sa pinakamalungkot na bahagi ng kanyang buhay.
FROM ACCOUNTANCY TO MINING ENGINEERING
Dahil dito, nag-enroll si Pompeii ng Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering sa Cebu Institute of Technology–University sa Cebu City.
“My father chose this course. My inspiration has always been my family, especially my parents, who sacrificed everything in order for us to get a college education.
Naging maganda naman ang kanyang academic performance, at naging dean’s lister pa sa unang term ng kanyang final year.
“My favorite subjects have been geology and law subjects. My least favorite is still calculus.”
Nagtapos siya noong March 2017 sa edad na 22 bilang regular student at walang natanggap na award.
August ng nasabing taon ay kumuha na agad siya ng board exam.
Top 1 si Pompeii, at may rating na 90.9 percent.
Kung nagduda siya sa sariling kakayahan dahil sa masaklap niyang karanasan sa unang course na kinuha, may mas maganda palang nakalaan sa kanya.
Aniya, “It was an unexpected success.”
“THIS TOO SHALL PASS”
Aminado si Pompeii na sobrang hirap ng engineering course.
Sambit niya, “The pressure is high...”
Pero paalala niya sa mga engineering students ay huwag masisiraan ng loob.
“There is always a light at the end of a tunnel. So when times get hard, always remember that ‘this too shall pass’ because it will.”
Nahirapan din siya sa paghahanda para sa board exam.
Aniya, “The greatest struggle for me was the feeling of hopelessness.
“There came a time when I was asking myself whether I was reviewing the right things and if what I was doing then would be worth it, or was I just wasting my time studying for nothing.”
Kaya ipinapayo niya sa mga kukuha ng board na mag-enroll sa reputable review center na nakapag-produce na ng mga topnotchers.
Mahirap din umano ang mismong board exam.
“The questions were tricky and needed strong comprehension and common sense in order to analyze them properly.”
Kinabahan din siya na baka bumagsak siya dahil, “I had erased and changed some of my correct answers at the last minute.”
PREMYO AT PAGKILALA
Bagaman at hindi niya inaasahan na magiging topnotcher siya, pagtatapat ni Pompeii, “I prayed for it.”
At sobrang happy siya na dininig ang kanyang panalangin.
“I went to my mom, who was having a meeting and told her the news. We were crying tears of joy because we couldn’t believe what had happened.”
Dahil sa kanyang tagumpay, nakatanggap siya mula sa kanilang university ng cash prize at laptop.
Masaya pa niyang pagbabahagi, “They also put my name on the school wall of fame.”
Sa ngayon, konektado si Pompeii sa Bulacan plant ng Republic Cement and Building Materials Inc.