What I Realized After Judging the Mr. & Ms. PRSES School Pageant

Before, I thought that my flare of being a local beauty queen would last only until I have turned over my crown to the next winner. Unlike my co-candidates before in Binibining Valenzuela who pursued their career in pageants, I have stopped joining such kind of contests when my strict boyfriend then did not allow me to try Miss Earth. He said that beauty queens are high-class prostitutes.

And so I shifted focus.

My boyfriend and I dated and dined. I gained tummy fats. Then I had a child. And so my gorgeousness meter dropped by 60%. Mommy duties robbed me my “me-time” and I became a “Manang Losyang” constant contender on the succeeding years.

At the time when I reverted back to working at the city hall, old acquaintances recognized me as the city’s former beauty queen. Some sheepishly commented that I have already neglected taking care of myself. I just laugh off at their comments while deep inside, I was a little ashamed that I have not sustained people’s expectations of an ambassadress. I am not remorseful though because I wouldn’t trade motherhood to glamor, of course. It is just that, my image at my home city is already connected to my past achievement that I could no longer erase in the memories of those whom I used to wow in the pageants I joined.

Now that I’m old, I have not expected that there will be a continuity of my life in local pageants – not as a candidate anymore, but as a judge!

I have been a pageant judge in countless occasions already. My latest was at PR San Diego Elementary School in Barangay Arkong Bato. I was invited by the PTA President to judge the Mr. and Ms. PRSES on December 16. The candidates were the cute and talented pupils of PR San Diego Elementary School.

Determining the candidates' fate.

It was a great experience. In fact, my student in one of my English classes was also there to be my co-judge. I was the oldest among the jurors who were all title holders in either local or school pageants. They were all slim. And I was so pregnant. Haha!

 Panel Of Judges

(I was their Mama Sang. Haha!)

I was very impressed to the organizers of the affair. It was so polished that it would definitely beat other like events – the over-all program, accommodation of guests and audience, trophy designs, prizes, and of course, the candidates, almost everything was impeccable! I even experienced what we call “LSS” or last song syndrome of Meghan Trainor’s single “Me Too” because it was repeatedly played in several production numbers.

Well Set!

Judging at that pageant made me realize that even if I am no longer young, the Miss Valenzuela image is already etched in my personality, hence the branding of this blog site. Whether I like it or not, prettifying my self has to be my thing even if this is laborious, costly, and tiring sometimes.

For Miss Valenzuela, will always be Binibining Valenzuela; and thank God, this is a cute additional income source for me to raise my kids. (Wink!)