The AIM Experience

A glass with that dreadful blue-colored juice fell on the conference hall floor after Rachelle, a classmate whose adrenaline seems to be always through the roof (like me) accidentally nudged as she was flinging her arms about in excitement, and in the throes of selfies-driven muffled laughter. It was our graduation hour, after five gruelling days of the AIM-brand of teaching. Never mind the broken glass, the moment was more important.

This batch of trainees is by far the craziest I have had the privilege of working with: all heastrong, all loud, all eloquent, all funny. We had 'kids' (same age as my daughter) in the class, like 'k-pop' stars, fair-skinned and pretty, but very smart; we had those from the private sector all eager to learn and 'do something' meaningful; a bunch of dedicated and gifted NGO folks who worked here and abroad, specifically in crisis areas (civil wars, ebola, name it); and of course, those from government, who seem to be seeking relevance in their work (like me, again). Oh and it was a delight to have Warren from Papua New Guinea once more. 

Our learning group is made up of people from various fields and it was a great experience working with them. I look at rural development  through jaded eyes now and it was quite exhilirating to get views coming from others' perpspectives. Our discussions, while loaded with jokes and all, were really healthy. Of course at times in heat of the exchanges, I could not help but be a bitch about my points of view. Well, those who know personally know me would understand that it is just my way of handling the passion I have for my work (and the fact that here in this course, I realize I am an idiot compared to the brilliant minds of the other participants and the professors). Those who do not, like the members of the team where I belong, may have been shocked at my shrilling voice when I wanted to stress a point. Then again, they were all good sports (except maybe Bill, a Filipino, retired from the States, who could not get it why it was so tedious to get his project of teaching from his truck skills on masonry and plumbing, on the ground and running). 

Still, this is my favorite of all the courses I have taken. While the concepts were not new to me, the approaches I have recently learned are. Those who have had the opportunity to study here years back would perhaps scoff at my million photos on social media, but to me, this is a milestone. After all, not everyone is given the chance to further one's professional growth, and at Asian Institute Of Management at that. I am truly grateful for that, and a myriad of other things. Like friendships forged in five days. Beautiful week, really.