From our offshore international student

Gustave Bacareza

I am Gustave, a Year 12  international student currently residing in Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia - one of the few remaining countries that has not been affected by the COVID-19 virus, and I am currently taking online classes with Fairhills High School and Virtual School Victoria.

There is no doubt that the past couple of years have been very difficult for everyone, even myself. Before the spread of the virus, I was already preparing for my flight to Melbourne to attend my Year 11 classes, until it was announced that the world is going through a pandemic. I was devastated, I still remember the feeling of fear that it might be the end of the world. Everyday there is news on the constant deaths of people, how busy streets are now empty and hospitals getting full. While I would say I am lucky to be stuck on a small island in the north pacific, I missed home, I missed my family, especially my grandma who took care of me when I was still little, she was fighting for her life against the virus. Everyday, me and my family would pray for her health. It was even difficult for her to be admitted because all of the hospitals were operating beyond their capacity. Thankfully after help from other relatives, the everyday sacrifices of nurses and doctors, and the fighter that she is,  she won the battle against death itself. I took this as an inspiration that there is still hope in everything, even if it is against all odds.

For all my Year 12, I was enrolled in Fairhills and Virtual School Victoria (VSV). Overall, it was an arduous experience. I personally found it difficult to learn by myself most of the time, I had no classmates to ask help from or even converse with. I was living a sedentary life. I hated it, just constantly staying in my room all day studying and completing the assigned work. During SAC weeks I had to drive to my dad’s office just to get access to a printer and a scanner to submit the finished SAC. It was honestly stressful, at times I felt very unmotivated, I dreaded that because of my situation I wouldn’t succeed or meet the academic demands of my course of choice (nursing). However, I learned that I am not the only student feeling the same way, I know there are millions of students around the world who couldn’t travel to attend school and there is no reason for me to complain. Although I wanted to attend school physically, where I could interact with my classmates and teachers, I am glad that I am here and I know there is still so much road for me to cover along the way.

I am looking forward to travelling to Australia to begin my journey to become a nurse and meet new friends along the way, and most especially, I would also like to personally express my gratitude to Mr Edmund Chow, for always believing in me, Ms Silvana La Leggia for giving extra effort, despite her busy schedule, and the entire school community for never giving up. 

Congratulations....

Gus was awarded the 'Best Guard ' of the Basketball League in Micronesia.  The award was presented to him by the President, David W Panuelo of the Federated States of Micronesia.