As most people have known, I’ve recently left my job as a public school teacher to pursue a career in the hair and makeup industry. I enjoyed teaching children and preparing lesson materials for them, but I knew in my heart that it wasn’t what I was meant to do. They say when you reach quarter life crisis, you’ll be on one of the major cross roads of your life. That’s when you’ll discover, if applicable, that you’re taking the wrong path or you’re getting burnt out with what you’re doing. You’ll find the path that you should take, but there are more cons than pros when you choose to take it. The biggest pro, however, is that this path will take you to unconditional happiness. Moreover, if you don’t follow it, you’ll forever live a life of misery and regret. Off topic, I think that’s also one of the main reasons why most women marry at the age of 25.
I’ve always been clueless and naive, they say. I never really had enough self-esteem to know that I’m capable of making decisions on my own. I just went with the flow. My mother told me to take this course, I wanted something else but I wasn’t motivated enough, so I just agreed with her. I then blinked and became a public school teacher. The job was hard, and the people were difficult to deal with. But as what an ancient philosopher said, “When you love your job, it wouldn’t feel like a task”. I rephrased Confucius a bit there. haha I was never happy. Whether it was a manipulative coworker, or extra work I wasn’t supposed to do, I always found more reasons to hate my job than to love it.
I wanted to become a music teacher when I was in high school, but I was too lazy to practice playing the piano. Quarter life crisis should end when you turn 25 or 26 (I’m not sure!). But in my case, since I’m naive or “slow” as what people would say, it continued on until I was 27 or 28 years old. I didn’t know which step to take. I decided to pursue graduate studies, but that didn’t turn out well. That was when I realized what I really wanted in life–why I never really put my heart into pursuing graduate studies.
I’ve always been “kikay,” even when I was younger. My sister played with trucks and toy cars while I played with barbies and rag dolls. I loved pulling pieces of cloth from my grandmother’s mattress and creating little dresses for my barbies. My mom used to put lipstick on my cheeks and smudge it to make it look like I had a not-so-subtle blush. So when I grew older and I was allowed to put on makeup, I really collected and bought as much as I can with my allowance *just so mommy wouldn’t be able to ruin my face again haha*. I ended up enjoying it. I saw myself spending hours in front of the mirror, practicing how to apply makeup. I watched youtube tutorials, and became one of Michelle Phan’s first fans. My sister would get annoyed because I always practiced on her.haha
So when I hit that cross-road, and realized that graduate studies wasn’t the right path for me, I took the other path. That path was all foggy and I really can’t see the other side, but I went through it anyway. Coincidentally, my sister had a coworker who was a freelance makeup artist. They were pretty close so she shared all her woes, and even my woes to her. She studied makeup artistry in MDA (the one in Mother Ignacia), and said it was a very disappointing experience. She advised that it was better to study in HD Makeup Studio & Academy (formerly Basement Academy) instead. I checked it out and saw that indeed, the program was better as the teachers were Hollywood educated. The tuition was cheaper and the student-teacher ratio was lower. Irregardless, I didn’t have enough money to cover the tuition.
Good thing there are a lot of loaning companies connected to public schools, but with shark-like interest of course. Well I knew that I would live a life of misery and regret if I didn’t follow my dream, so without looking back, I applied for a loan to cover my tuition fees for my makeup and hair styling classes. I had to live without savings and within a super-duper tight budget for a year and half just to pay for my shark-like loans. But I never forgot to return to God 10% of my entire earnings, and He has not forgotten to take care of me and my family during and even long after my difficult time. I couldn’t leave my job even after I finished my makeup and hair styling classes because I had to finish paying for my debts so I endured those years, secretly dreaming of becoming a professional makeup artist. I promised myself that I would leave my job as a public school teacher as soon as I pay off my debts.
Everything turned out well. I’ve left my job and I’m now building my portfolio. Of course there are still problems I have to deal with–such as the fact that I spent all my savings buying my tools and equipment.haha But I know that God will help me get through them. Serving God is not confined to ministering in the church full-time. It can also mean using your talents to glorify Him. He gave me this talent and I’m glorifying Him by doing my best at all times and by never giving half-baked work. That’s it for now. That’s my entire life in one blog entry.haha Challenges will come, but I sure am ready to face them!
That’s me sa gilid! Yes, I look tired, and that’s because I work hard!
Makeup by Noemi - Antipolo, Rizal | Manila 