The TREDFOR journey has ended, and there are surely lots of things I learned and sudden realizations that came along the way.
The discussions of the class started out with a recap of the past 3 TRED courses. TREDONE and TREDTWO were a little blurry in my head since they were 2 and 1 year/s ago respectively. TREDTRI was a little fresh since I took it just last term. These TRED courses were really helpful in making me prepared for the real world. More focused on TREDFOR, the discussions went to Jesus' life and disciples. Moreover, what does Christ mean or what does being a Christian mean? Then we moved on to the vocation/calling part. Vocation can also be called as passion, calling in a sense that God is leading us to a certain path. There are 3 types of calling, namely, marital, holy orders, and single blessedness. At first I did not understand what single blessedness was, and thought of it as people who are just single. But our professor reiterated that these kinds of people are single by choice. Then the discussions shifted to the broad topic of marriage. This is where people were more excited and ready to learn. The succeeding topics were indeed very helpful in relationships with not only my family but also my girlfriend. The stories, opinions and experiences that each of my classmate had were very meaningful and fruitful. I can definitely learn from them and approach them whenever I have problems of my own. I myself am part of a relationship and with the insights I gained from TREDFOR, I am able to apply them in our relationship and make it better. Especially the topic regarding mutual empathy, and guidelines of talking with the partner. I have learned not to shout, understanding my partner, putting myself in her shoes, choosing the words that I am about to say and listening very carefully. The birth order topic was interesting for me as well because it focused more on the characteristics of my siblings based on our birth order. This made me literally compare my siblings to the characteristics being discussed in class (in the pdf file), and somehow relating it to my parents as well. The family genogram was an important topic as well because it highlighted us knowing our family and relatives more, getting connected to them more and knowing their background as a family. Not only was I able to learn things about myself, but also about my family, my siblings, and my partner. There were lots of questions being raised that I didn't even think of before, but I was ready to answer them fully. These answers and decisions I will be making will change depending on the situations and challenges that will come in the future.
The interview with a married couple was the best way of knowing my parents regarding their married life. It was a serious talk with them and they answered the questions seriously too, unlike when we talk with them casually. It made me realize that a married life is a complicated life, but with a partner, both can get through problems together.
The pre-cana seminar was a great experience regarding knowing the do's and don'ts in a married life, as well as a journey of an individual throughout her long relationship with her husband. There were real life experiences and stories mentioned and I saw couples who were about to get married in the next 6 months, listening carefully and looking ready for their marriage.
TREDFOR has been a good preparation and learning ground for me, and surely I will be applying the things I learned in the future. The topics were relevant in knowing one another and have a deeper understanding of oneself and the relationships of a person. Not only love relationships, but also family-wise. These topics aim to mold me into a better person to serve God even more, and with the chosen vocation and the calling He has given me, I would best use these things I learned to the fullest extent for God.
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