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Gunpla Chronicle: Fascination Turned Inspiration

Gunpla Chronicle: Fascination Turned Inspiration

Gunpla

Have you ever experienced wanting to have something when you were a child and when you are already an adult and started working you started living or buying that dream? For sure there is, whether that’s a very expensive watch, cellphone, game console, underwear, or any other priceless things – depending of course to the person who wanted it.

As an islander who lived most of his life in the so-called “Happy Island of Catanduanes” which is found in the eastern part of the Philippines, I have one thing that I like to have ever since I was a child – spoiler alert, it’s not a million pesos. You see the situation in Catanduanes is very different, some things are not available on the island that you have to travel either by land or air just to go to the mainland (Albay) or Manila to be able to experience or buy those things.

I am not saying that Catanduanes is totally a remote island and thousand kilometers behind when it comes to advancement and progression from Albay or Manila (unfortunately it seems like that). However, since we are on an island surrounded by waters, not all things are readily available – take note we only got Jollibee last 2012 and years from that McDo came.

The thing the I really want to have is a toy Gundam or Gunpla (the term used for a toy Gundam). This is a toy that you have to build piece by piece. It’s so fascinating to know that the Japanese were able to create such a toy that you don’t need anything to screw or glue the parts or pieces to build it. Another interesting thing about it is how they manage to create even the smallest detail that if not properly placed will not be able to successfully build the Gundam.

Honestly, I only watched a few episodes of the anime, so I cannot share with you the plot of the story. If you are wondering how on earth I got interested with this toy if I did not even watch the anime, the story behind is, when I was young my mom and dad would always bring me to Pacific Mall in Legazpi City (mainland and 3 ½ hours roro ride or more hours). In this mall, you will see all the things you will not see in Catanduanes – because we have malls but it’s like S-MALLs. And what would give an electrifying excitement to a child’s mind is a toy store.

I remember vividly the first time I saw a Gunplas’s box – the image of a warrior robot ready to take over the mall, the world. So, from that moment I hurriedly took the box and told my parents to buy it for me. Unfortunately, I just saw my mom’s eyes opened widely and uttered a crispy “No!” as she saw the tag price of the Gunpla. I cried (typical tantrums when you did not successfully get what you want – very classic). After the drama inside the toy store, I obviously failed so we left, as we were eating our dinner in a very famous fast food restaurant (Jollibee) my mom tried to explain to me that buying that toy is just a waste of money, blah blah blah.

I did not mind listening to her, I just promised myself that one day I will buy one – or many. Thus, my fascination with that toy begun, every time I will go to that mall or any other malls in Naga City, Camarines Sur, I will always look for a toy store and look for the displayed Gunplas. I will grab one as if I will buy one and imagine the happiness of building it. I will even try to look at the Japanese characters trying to decipher it.

Fast forward to the present, my fascination turned into reality. I have now a growing number of gunpla collection. But how did I achieve my goal? For an average earner like me having a gunpla is very difficult for it’s a little pricy. Yes, buying one can indeed give you already a getaway trip to a tourist destination in the Philippines or a round trip ticket to an Asian country (if the airfare is on promo). But if you are just a beginner collector, there are affordable Gunplas that will not cost you a lot of money. I remembered, my first Gunpla was the cheapest one which cost only for Php 300 something that brought me to the mall the next day to buy a more expensive one because the details and intricate designs of the expensive ones will really lure you to buy them.

Gunpla

You will say that I am not wise about spending money on very expensive toys. You cannot eat those or use them in building a house. I’ll tell you, most of my friends would always express their disagreements the same way as what you are thinking right now. However, it will always bring me to the part that what makes me happy will make me happy – no matter what. Because for me collecting and buying Gunplas are not just to satisfy my childish enjoyment but a symbol of success in hurdling the unpredictable challenges in life. I bore inside my heart the inspiration brought to me by my fascination with this toy.

Yes, Gunpla is an inspiration for me. And here are the reasons how I use it as my inspiration:

1. To finish my education.

I was not born poor neither was born rich. I was born in a family where we have enough food on our table and enough money for our education. And this kind of life would kick you hard to set goals that will make your life happier. But to get the life that you want requires inspiration that will motivate you to stay focus and driven – that’s where my dream of a room full of Gundams will enter. I bore in my mind the idea of a room full of Gundams that I studied hard and finish my education on time. I was able to look for a job and finally, I was able to start buying my dream toy.

2. It made me stay

Since these toys are a little pricy it was the main reason why I chose to stay in my current work right now. Trust me, the first month I spent in my current work was like hell. There were so many crooked principles that I cannot bear to take and the first thing that I want to do was to leave. However, as an islander who chose to leave behind all the other opportunities on the island, I have no choice but to look for a silver lining – and that is if I stay and work hard, I’ll be able to buy my favorite toy.

And of course, to set the record straight, I may have been exposed to different filthy and dirty tricks (I faced a lot of demons) and just like the Gundams I tried my best to maintain the ideals that I have – but sometimes because everything was helpless and hopeless I tend to forget my ideal. (insert devil laughing emoji.)

2. Life Trophies

Gunpla is my symbol of success – literally. Whenever I achieved something big I will buy one, example when I passed PhilSat (Philippine Law School Admission Test) I bought Gundam Wing (HiRM) when I started publishing Nobody’s Adventure, I bought a Unicorn Gundam UC (HiRM), and when I published Nobody’s Adventure and passed the UPD-MATE (University of the Philippines Diliman – Masters Admission Test in Education), I bought Red Astray (PG). [I] bought these toys to immortalize the achievements that I had. [I] considered them as my life trophies and whenever I am looking at each of them, I remembered the things I reached.

4. Aarborg

How can I miss the part of including the spirit of a Gundam in a sci-fi Novel where the existence of this kind of technology is no longer questionable? Thus, I took the inspiration and gave life to it inside the novel. When I wrote the last chapter of Nobody’s Adventure, I envision the existence of a Gundam and how it will become a great addition to the colorful world that I created. I felt that giving the inspiration of the Gundam to my Aarborg was the missing piece that will make the story complete.

Gunpla
Aarborg. Nobody’s Adventure

A happy portion of my life

Those were just some of the things I could say Gundam became a huge influence and a strong inspiration to my whole being as a person. It became a happy portion of my life that I never regret getting attached to.

A lot of people and even my family would see this hobby as a childish act or one way of wasting money. Sometimes I have that impression too, especially when I chose to buy Gunpla before buying the necessities. But the meaning of this collection for me is priceless. It gave me strength and hope to continue life and become better. I am not yet sure when I am going to stop collecting but what I am sure is, my fascination with this wonderful creation led me to different colorful things in life and that’s what matters most for me.

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