(Shot by Sara Pacia, Tinig ng Plaridel)
She stood in front of the crowded room, her hand clutching two sheets, her figure struggling for composure.
“I still lack one paper for Ma’am Chit to complete my feature writing class,” the girl, Paula, said in Tagalog.
She glanced at the casket, and her voice shook. “It’s here–I’m finally passing it.”
With claps, some chuckled, some nodded.
The prof who was no longer there to grade the 2-years-overdue paper became its subject. In it, Paula recalled her doubts and laid out her regrets–missing out on what a great teacher she had.
With every sentence, the occasional pause, Paula would break down, all until she finished reading the final paper. She had posted it on Facebook a day after learning her Prof. Chit Estella-Simbulan died in a crash.
One of Paula’s batch mates said the paper contained the words many lacked the courage to express.
It was probably the most emotional moment in almost a week of memorials.
(Shot by Anjo Bagaoisan)
Simbulan died instantly when a speeding bus rammed and crushed a taxi she was riding along Commonwealth Avenue.
Such a death seemed ill-suited for a journalist like Ma’am Chit, but at the wake, her colleague Ellen Tordesillas belied the thought.
“If Chit’s death would result in a probe on road management, it would not be in vain,” she said.
PinoyJourn: Stories behind the Stories 
