Steemit Philippines' Project Alinaga Arts & Music Therapy Day: My First Steemit Event

At long last, this day finally came. My small family of four has been excited about this since we've confirmed our participation about 3 weeks ago.

It was raining when I woke up at around 5 in the morning today. It wasn't going to stop us though and by 6:30 am, we (@steemitph and our 2 girls) were already on the road. We entered the schoold grounds before 8am and found @flabbergast-art and his friend at the gym. The school was practically empty and I took the opportunity to look around.

Like all public schools I've visited before, Cecilio Apostol Elementary School had an air of discipline about it. Trash cans are available in almost every corner and they strictly implement garbage segregation, their garden is filled with pots made of recycled plastic bottles, and their walls were filled with colorful art showcasing the students' talents and the teachers's wisdom.

By 8am, we started working on the venue and preparing for the activity. We started putting up the streamers and prepared the snacks and bought some ice to make sure the drinks were chilled before we serve them. The parents and their children started to arrive, there were also teachers who were to be part of our program.

The program officially started at 9 am with a dance exercise for the kids. We then divided them into 2 groups for the music session, where @flabbergast-art introduced musical instruments and gave each child an instrument that they played later on. The kids were ecstatic to try the instruments for themselves and had a blast playing it to their hearts content. This activity lasted for about an hour and a half before we decided to take a break and distribute the snacks we prepared for them.

The parents were then called to another room for a Parent-Teacher meeting. We spent that time for the art session, where the kids were grouped into 6. I was tasked to handle one of the 4 groups. I was to make sure that the children were able to use the art materials properly and ensure that no one would get hurt in the activity. It was my first time to interact with kids with special needs and I was quite nervous. I imagined it would be difficult to give the children instructions and was worried that someone would get hurt under my watch. But being with them is nothing different from being with my girls, my mother's instinct kicked in and I absolutley enjoyed every minute I was with them. They made incoherent sounds that were alien to my ears but I found myself understanding what they were trying to communicate to me. They were excited and looked very pleased with themselves while showing their artwork to me. When I give them the thumbs up, they would shriek and jump and clap their hands as if my opinion was so very important.







It was then time for lunch. Everyone, inluding the parents, teachers and volunteers, enjoyed a Jollibee meal thanks to @steemph. We had time to take some pictures with the teachers and other other volunteers before our last activity, which was to give away the coloring books and crayons. These were sponsored by @luvabi and @grazz. We capped the day with a message from @steemitph about Steemit. Some of the parents approached me while we were cleaning up and I was able to give them a run-down of what to expect in the platform.







All in all, I'd say this day was a big success. This is now one of the things I love about Steemit and I can't wait for the next event.