National Women's Month: I am a Monument of Women

Words by: Gianna Santiago

Art by: Gianna Santiago, David Silava, Arianna Zafra

The chatters in our go-to tambayan are as loud as ever, with different topics circulating on AS Hill. From “What do you have for lunch?” to figuring out how to calendar a team’s deliverable timeline for the month, spaces like these alongside your orgmates are intimate and spark inspiration for the organization you are a part of. The bonds formed with them hold nothing but secret power— for these tambayan conversations are filled with laughter, complaints about homework, and lessons in leadership.

But these rooms are not the only vessels that hold this secret power. Our bodies also host these conversations we share on AS Hill in memory— keeping those lessons in leadership in mind to generate them into parts of ourselves that are shaped by others, as we figure out the journey of student leadership in our time in the university.

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To take on leadership positions will always hold a gravity of risk— this, I have acknowledged ever since. But with risk comes an inevitable commitment to something greater: a potential that you and the peers who lead with you see in the organization. 

All the headships I pursued at the last minute in college were filled with frustration and disorganization on my end. I could never figure out the world in front of me, or what my rationale was for a project I had in mind. However, the women around me helped me through it all. In all the things that I do — calendaring, creating Google Sheets templates, and sharing tips on how to maximize a workforce — I learned through women. I get these opportunities to learn in any space I come across. Whether it be AS Hill, the fourth floor of CBA, last-minute questions on the AS steps, or even in the restrooms, as I loudly discuss my confusion with Google Forms in between bathroom stalls. The difficulties in trying to solve a small problem in org work dissipate when the intricacies of a woman’s mind resolve it. They go to great lengths to reach that untapped capability we see in our organization through the positions they take the risk for, and I am a reflection of these great lengths as I continue to learn what it means to lead through their skills.

“When women lead, they are thoughtful— they care about the details. They do everything to make sure they get the best output possible,” says Maika Pantaleon, a third-year B Sports Science major. When women are at the forefront of leadership, it becomes critical— as they challenge the project in front of them to be the best it could be. 

During the time the excuse of “Freshie pa lang siya, okay lang magkamali ‘yan,” was still applicable to me, my first ever Committee Head in the involvement I signed up for was a woman. With a woman-led team and a committee that was dominantly all female, I learned so much in terms of how to stand your ground in turning your desire for change into a reality. “This is needed because back then, they didn’t have that. Let’s do better and incorporate it this year.” “How can this be accomplished within the week I gave? Are you sure this is doable? Have you guys consulted with others?” “I’ll make comments on this, let’s flesh it out more.” “Are you sure you don’t need it?” were just a few sentences I remember from her. Questions of feasibility were something that I feared when I gave even a whisper of a suggestion. But I knew these constructive comments, no matter how harsh they were to first-year me, were ways to use this untapped potential in me to its fullest capacity— as I knew back then the capabilities of the committee I was freshly placed in could be a little bit more efficient.

This five-month span of working with them was not just meaningful discussions on how to get the job done— it was also feeling uplifted and even inspired by the women that you work with. In these spaces with organization deliverables also come grounds for safe spaces. Environments of accountability and support never leave in dynamics led by women, as growth and communication are always at the top priorities of the team. As I face these constructive comments, there also come times when I am met with soft-spoken words of encouragement or approval. In addressing mistakes, there is no shame, but rather, conversations of moving forward on how to do better are present so the team can grow, for mistakes are lessons for improvement. I knew then that these bonds with them were not limited to organization work; it consisted of open conversations and shared ideas that enabled us to deepen our love for each other as friends, and the committee we worked in as orgmates. 

But these intricacies are not limited to just the people who spearhead the organizations I am a part of. I hear the echoes of the women who taught me how to be more critical in statement making, who gave me the heirloom tip that is “low effort, high yield,” who helped me be more efficient through all the Google Sheets I’ve made copies of and taken inspiration from, who unleashed my creativity by answering my queries on a certain material I was designing— I am a monument that consists of these tips taught by women all in passing. My hands, my mind, and my voice are all sites of strength that I’ve learned when women are at the forefront of mobilizing a workforce. My body holds these conversations of secret power, generating these thoughts and ideas they all made into inspiration and traits that make me, me, but still distinctly them. Through the friendships and conversations I have made with women in these committees and teams, I feel seen more than ever, giving me the drive to lead and strive for greater things for the organization. When I take on headship positions, I no longer dread the idea of having to schedule send a message at 8:00 in the morning, or having to bump deliverables and feel embarrassed by it; for I take them all with the mindset that is to bring out the potential you see in your project— your team, and all it needs is a little push, the same way these women push you to become the best you can be in your time in the organization.

The best leaders I have come across and who continue to inspire me to lead are all women. I take so much after their processes, heavy on pushing healthy boundaries, for we find the potential in each individual we work with to achieve something greater in the organization. “Something greater” has always been subjective in the eyes of any student leader, especially as all teams have their way to define success. For me, that “something greater” never starts with numbers or key performance indicators that one has to fulfill by the end of the semester. Hearing the women around me and their stories, seeing their leadership firsthand, enables me to strive even further and turn my curiosity into ambition, and this ambition into passion. I turn this desire for change into a reachable goal, and this reachable goal becomes a reality, translated into a love for the organization. And that change, or that “something greater,” is through continuing to embody the values of the organization,  through the work we do as members, as different committees, and as an entity. That “something greater” is being able to continue to show everyone, both in and outside the organization, how we do everything in excellence.

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Our bodies are made of emotion and the experiences we’ve faced and conquered— even fear and doubt. Most importantly, it is made of ambition and passion. Growing up, leadership has never been my forte, but from my mother who taught me how to answer and stop stuttering in online Miting de Avances to the women who help me when I have questions in org work— I am who I am given the women who taught me how to lead, led me, and lead with me.

This National Women’s Month, we honor the women who continue to empower us through leadership. I am a monument of the women around me: shared hair ties, conversations between bathroom stalls, and most importantly, shared values and struggles that enable us to call for something greater. Our bodies are made of ambition and passion. Now is the time to reflect on this monument that is our body, wherein it continues to shape itself through the leadership skills of the women around us. Your body can be scattered with childhood scars, and be adorned with bracelets made by your best friend, but it is also covered with untapped potential to take on the risk of leadership in your organization for it to be the best it is— for you know the capabilities of your organization to be better. Let us commemorate women as their words and actions focus on change, and stand alongside them as they challenge the world for greater potential.