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Joshua Pangan (2 AB POS-MPM) is “your spoiiicy Kapampangan, written by a woman,” and he can’t wait to grace the OrSem Tindig stage as an O-Host.
“My character blossoms with heavily feminine characteristics: sensitivity, sophistication, and spiciness!” he exclaims. Raised by a single mother, Josh considers himself a proud product of his matriarchal family, as his spiel suggests.
He is as bubbly as he is approachable—his poise costing him none of his congeniality. Even over a Zoom call, Josh’s energy is infectious in conversation; once can’t help but smile while listening to him speak about his Ateneo experience.
A self-proclaimed extrovert, Josh sorely misses the thrill of making new friends at school. “I super love meeting new people that I can bond with. That’s my top priority, looking forward to the onsite experience,” he says.
This O-Host admits that he found his first year in college a bit underwhelming but only due to circumstance. “I wouldn’t really message or call people [online]. I’m more extroverted onsite.”
Although Josh’s freshman year was not everything he had hoped for, he sees this year’s OrSem as a chance for him to reconnect with the school. “When [the] time came that school opened for onsite [classes], and O-Hosts auditions came, [the] Ateneo suddenly became my home. I felt that this is actually where I want to be—not in any other place.”
Josh hopes to share this excitement for the Ateneo experience with all the incoming freshmen. In fact, he considers the upcoming OrSem event as his first as well, as it will be partially onsite, unlike his own OrSem during his first year in college. “I wanted to be an O-Host [because] I think I would experience it better if I’m also on the center stage,” he adds.
Never shying away from new opportunities, Josh wants to be his flamboyant yet genuine self in front of the freshmen. He hopes they would be more comfortable in their own skin, too. “Just be you, but don’t be scared… it’s okay for you to not yet know who you are, but what’s important is just to be real,” he assures.
Josh’s sense of identity has developed over his life and his time in Ateneo. He particularly credits the experience of interacting with other people as an opportunity to find himself. “There are some people that have a preconceived description of you, and it is up to you to break that stereotype,” he explains.
Josh loves the challenge brought by meeting new people and getting past the initial judgment people make of him. “The more that they fit me into a stereotype, the more that I get to express my personality, my character. I’m becoming more ‘me’ with these challenges,” Josh shares.
One way that the Ateneo challenged this flamboyant O-Host is with the experience of impostor syndrome. Josh explains, “[I would ask myself,] ‘Do I deserve to be here? Am I being someone else when I am in the Ateneo? Is this just a facet of my character?’ It challenged me to express the real me, [and] that’s still a struggle for me.”
Beyond the realm of academics, college also offers other opportunities for self-discovery in other avenues. Josh encourages the freshmen to take the time to find themselves. “It really doesn’t matter what other people say about you or think about you as long as you’re happy being yourself without hurting others. That’s the moment when you start to be real with yourself,” Josh says.
Behind his bibo, sophisticated self, this sweet and spicy O-Host experiences the same struggles any regular Atenean would. Josh serves as a loud and honest reminder for the freshmen that it’s okay to be yourself and to simply take things one step at a time.
