Fairplay For All Foundation is a non-profit community organization based in Payatas, a large urban poor community in Metro Manila, Philippines. The organization takes a holistic approach to empowering its community to break cycles of poverty and trauma. My work with Fairplay is focused on two projects: (1) Writing an internal report on how Fairplay can better support families in Payatas in accessing quality employment opportunities. (2) Helping facilitate 'Emotional Quotient (EQ)' sessions that support the emotional and mental well-being of local children.

Lately, I’ve been feeling pretty anxious about how quickly life seems to be happening. These first three years of undergrad have flown by. It’s hard to believe that this time next year I’ll be braving the “real world.” I simply don’t feel ready for it.

This week, Fairplay celebrated an important anniversary that helped put things in perspective. Fourteen years ago—around the same age I am now—Coach Roy founded Payatas FC and planted the seeds of what would eventually grow into Fairplay For All. We marked the anniversary with a vibrant summer fair for the children, families, and wider community that Fairplay continues to serve and uplift.

The venue itself, the Payatas Sports Centre, stands as a symbol of that growth. Once a neglected patch of dirt, Fairplay secured elusive land rights and, under a shoestring budget, built two futsal courts through over a decade of gradual development and renovation.

This week reminded me that progress is not always immediate. On the scale of fourteen years, a week is almost nothing. Growth can be slow. Most times it is invisible, only noticeable if you stick around long enough to see it.

What went well?

I’m happy to report that I’ve been taking my goal of (patiently) practicing Tagalog seriously, helping to facilitate ten EQ sessions in Tag-lish this week. My supervisor (endearingly) rated my Tagalog at a Grade 2 level, which by some cosmic coincidence is the same age I was fourteen years ago when Fairplay’s journey began. Baby steps, but steps nonetheless.

Each EQ session includes meditation, gratitude sharing, a healthy snack, and a guided activity that aims to build a growth mindset. One of the students’ favourite weekly activities is “Levelling,” where they answer increasingly challenging math questions across ten levels.

The team had been struggling to update the questions often enough to keep the sessions engaging. So, using some Excel tricks I picked up years ago from an old art project, I built a system that auto-generates new questions for the first four levels.

It was a small reminder that growth takes many forms. Even forgotten skills can find new purpose when given time and the right context.

What could have been done differently?

With so much time going into the EQ sessions, upgrading the Levelling workflow, and preparing for the summer fair, I didn’t get to work on the internal report as much as I would have liked.

The organization has given me quite a bit of autonomy on how I manage my schedule. I hope to use the opportunity to practice developing my time management, and prioritizing skills.

What did I learn about myself when working with others?

I’ve started to notice that I am sometimes still hesitant to ask for support when I need it. Growing up, I used to think that asking for help was an indictment of my competence. I must admit that sometimes I still do.

It has been quite a while since I worked collaboratively with others. Working alongside a trained researcher and a social worker, both native Tagalog speakers,  I now realize it would be good to acknowledge that I am indeed in a knowledge deficit. I could grow much more if I asked more often for advice on the internal report, guidance on my interactions with the children, and support when practicing Tagalog.

What did I learn about leadership?

It has been encouraging to see how much the students have internalized the values of integrity, care, and developing a growth mindset.

The “Levelling” task, for example, requires students to mark their own answers. This determines whether they move up, move down, or stay at the current level. Honestly, there are moments when my elementary school self would not have completed that task with integrity. Especially in situations I observed where all the other students had levelled up and proclaimed, “That was so easy.” Still, I saw students take a principled stance and focus on their own development.

Interacting with the students has been such an awakening experience in ways that I don't yet have the words to articulate. For now, I'll say I've enjoyed every second of my time with them, and I look forward to the EQ sessions to come.

What do I want to develop or focus on next?

As I reflect on my discomfort with the passage of time, I realize the need to strengthen my own growth mindset. I want to become more compassionate about the longer-term future I am beginning to acknowledge. Years of trying to be a diligent student have sometimes blinded me to the fact that I am still young, and that the majority of the hard work is still to come. I've got time to patiently develop the skills I hope to one day have.

I may be speaking Tagalog at a second-grade level, for example, but I am technically still a kindergarten-aged adult.

Fourteen years from now, I hope my 35-year-old self looks back on who I am today with the same feeling of youth and (endearing) naivety that I extend to my seven-year-old self. I hope I continue to pursue principled growth, even when it feels invisible.