How once a princess turns into a warrior

Hello everyone! Madlang ka hives!
Would you like to know the story of a warrior? Stay tuned and get ready to know my story. I hope this inspires you to be more than you think you are. In every photo that I post, there will always be a story behind it.

Are you now ready to know more about me? Letsss goooo...

I am Jeanel S. Casinillo, 20 years old, born in Buaya, Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, but currently residing in Uling, City of Naga, Cebu. A place where a warrior grows wiser and bolder than anybody expected, and a place where my story began.

My childhood story

Do you recognize who this little adorable angel is? Yep! That's me. You guys must ask me, "Don't you have a baby picture?" Well, yes, I don't have any, and that's because I am just an adopted child. That adorable, happy, and lively angel in that photo also has a sad story that she didn't even know existed at that time.

My biological parents temporarily gave me to my uncle, telling him that they would come back after their work, and guess what! They didn't come back for me. I was only 1 month old when they lied about coming back; I was only 1 month old when I experienced being left by biological parents. One month that gave me traumas of being left behind for my whole life. Until I grew up and finally became curious, I was already asking my guardian why my surname was different from theirs, and they honestly told me the whole story.

I was 7 years old at that time.They didn't intend to hide it from me; they were just waiting for the time when I was ready, and I sincerely appreciate that at least they didn't lie to me, just like my biological parents did when I was only one month old. Since that day, I have also come up with thousands of questions in my mind.

Even when I have heard an answer, there is always a feeling of incompleteness that haunts me every day. It was not until they finally introduced me to my biological parents that I felt my first heartbreak. I don’t know why, but the moment I saw them, I did not feel happiness. The moment they told me everything, I still did not feel that my questions had been answered. I just don't know why I'm hurting so much instead of being happy because I finally met them. At that young age of mine , I learned that some questions cannot be easily answered with an answer or words that come from someone's mouth.

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Where my self capabilities exploration starts

Fast forward, a little girl finally turning into grade 7 or high school at Don Andres Soriano National High School. The little girl started to grow up wiser and was trying her best to learn more about her capabilities and talents, which led her to discover her sport: arnis martial arts. She thought she was afraid of the pain from every strike, but she told herself that if she could handle her first heartbreak, then why couldn't she handle this stick? And that girl was me; the only difference is that she was a little girl back then, and now I'm a warrior—not just because of arnis, but because of the experiences of that once little girl.

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Succeeding my highschool journey

I studied well until I graduated from senior high school at Don Andres Soriano National High School, where I studied HUMSS (Humanities and Social Sciences) and I was able to get my diploma

Where my college journey begin

After graduating from senior high school, I immediately enrolled at Cebu Technological University Naga Extension Campus, and with prayers, I was able to pass the entrance examination and finally started my college journey as a BACHELOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION MAJOR IN GENERAL CONTENT STUDENT.

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Facing reality and getting out in my comfort zone

This photo shows when I'm in my first year college era and it is actually not that easy for me to socialize with my classmates since I grew up playing by myself inside the house. Other kids even bullied me for being a boring child at that time. However, I don't regret it because, although I may have seemed lonely during my childhood, I learned a lot of skills and practices due to my parents' way of disciplining me. I was also able to be part of the CTU NAGA EXT. CAMPUS ARNIS TEAM, the only female artisan to represent CTU NAGA in the year 2022-2023, where I won a gold medal in trimet. Until now, I still couldn't believe that I made it, since I'm that kind of person that doesn't even care if I win the game or not, because what matters to me more is the sportsmanship that I'm carrying from my school to anywhere that I'll be playing in every fight.

A day to remember

I was in my second year of college at this time, performing for our culminating program, which actually went well. I was finally able to socialize, and now I was the one who kept on talking, the jolly one, the crazy and naughty one in class, AHAHHAA... I found friends and discovered or experienced new things with them; everything just feels so right, even though there are times that I get involved in a fight because of academic matters. But still, I continue knowing and loving myself more than anybody can. Despite exhaustion and tears throughout this year, I was still able to make it. And IF I CAN, THEN YOU CAN; you just have to feel uncomfortable for you to be able to know yourself more and grow, so stop staying in your comfort zone. Again, IF I CAN, THEN YOU CAN.

When life trials & realizations hit me

And finally, my current year photo. I'm finally in my 3rd year of college this year and the unexpected struggles, failures and pains I encounter are getting heavier day by day. The bloom in my face slowly dies, the brightness slowly dims, friends slowly disappear, life is slowly getting darker and darker. But I am no longer that little girl to just cry and give up easily, so here I am struggling but still fighting with my day-to-day life as a student, an athlete, a songwriter, a theater play actor, a sister and as a daughter that never tells that she's struggling and drowning. And yes, that's the reality that every student can relate to.

Going to school with an empty stomach and forgetting about eating lunch, and sometimes we just choose not to eat lunch just to buy the materials needed for our demo. I'm pretty sure lots of students out there can relate, but it doesn't mean that I'll stop and just give up on life. I have goals, dreams and visions that I'm currently working on by starting with being able to graduate from college. And for me, that little girl started to grow as a warrior when she saw the situation of "REALITY" at an early age.

WHY I DECIDED TO JOIN HIVE?

​I decided to join because of my friend, @derrayal. She told me about hives and at first I was honestly hesitant to the point that I asked her what hive really is, and then she carefully explained it to me to the point that I really got interested in joining hive. Based on her explanations, I can see that hive would help me to share my story and how I became who I am today, able to exchange my skills and interact with the helpful community. For someone like me who wants to gain more knowledge and to share my knowledge with others by joining Hive, I'm rooting for more knowledge and broadening my insights even further.

There was also an orientation led by Mr. @intoy.bugoy bugoy on april 1,2025, which also made my mind clearer about hive and gain more informations about the importance of hive and how to properly manage my account and I am greatful for having him and able to attend his entertaining and great orientation.