Shutting down a country
The lady beside me fidgeted with the seatbelt. I tried to ignore her and proceeded to read. I wish planes become passe within my lifetime, edged out by virtual bilocation. I made that term up. Beam me up, Scotty.
She refused the airline food, which was wise, really. But the stewardess sensed the rejection was more out of embarrassment than elevated food preferences. She watched me as I gobbled up my food, the fatty beef variety. I was so hungry I could eat a cow. I was, albeit bit by bit. Gram by gram.
Seeing that eating airline food wasn't really a complicated operation, she finished her meal.
I decided to be nice and we talked. She's 35, leaving behind her two kids who are in grade school. She's going to Greece to work, to live with the mother she last saw when she too, was in grade school.
Her mom and dad have different partners now, their marriage unable to withstand the years of separation. Who marries and leaves, anyway? What is a marriage when ten years is equivalent to just months of being together?
Her husband is a seaman, spending years at sea. Being together is impossible: His ship does not dock in Greece.
"You are repeating your mother's story," I said.
"Yes, I am. Can't be helped," she says. She sees her own marriage falling apart in a couple of years, if it hasn't already.
At the Bangkok airport, I taught her how to look for her next flight, which, being 12 hours away, still wasn't on the board. She thanked me for showing her how to navigate her way around the airport.
Hours after I arrived in Manila, Friedwater said he's packed his life and suitcases and is at the airport, boarding a plane bound for New Zealand.
Should any government official again proclaim that thousands of Filipinos were shipped or flown to foreign shores this year like it is a matter of national pride, sunugin sana sa impyerno ang kaluluwa niyo. May your lives and the lives of your those you love be miserable.
For generations now, our government has done nothing to prevent mothers, fathers, sons and daughters from taking the option that rends families apart - working abroad.
More than 50 percent of Filipino families are either bereft of a mother or a father or both. Our best minds are abroad. We might as well declare bankruptcy and shut our country down.
She refused the airline food, which was wise, really. But the stewardess sensed the rejection was more out of embarrassment than elevated food preferences. She watched me as I gobbled up my food, the fatty beef variety. I was so hungry I could eat a cow. I was, albeit bit by bit. Gram by gram.
Seeing that eating airline food wasn't really a complicated operation, she finished her meal.
I decided to be nice and we talked. She's 35, leaving behind her two kids who are in grade school. She's going to Greece to work, to live with the mother she last saw when she too, was in grade school.
Her mom and dad have different partners now, their marriage unable to withstand the years of separation. Who marries and leaves, anyway? What is a marriage when ten years is equivalent to just months of being together?
Her husband is a seaman, spending years at sea. Being together is impossible: His ship does not dock in Greece.
"You are repeating your mother's story," I said.
"Yes, I am. Can't be helped," she says. She sees her own marriage falling apart in a couple of years, if it hasn't already.
At the Bangkok airport, I taught her how to look for her next flight, which, being 12 hours away, still wasn't on the board. She thanked me for showing her how to navigate her way around the airport.
Hours after I arrived in Manila, Friedwater said he's packed his life and suitcases and is at the airport, boarding a plane bound for New Zealand.
Should any government official again proclaim that thousands of Filipinos were shipped or flown to foreign shores this year like it is a matter of national pride, sunugin sana sa impyerno ang kaluluwa niyo. May your lives and the lives of your those you love be miserable.
For generations now, our government has done nothing to prevent mothers, fathers, sons and daughters from taking the option that rends families apart - working abroad.
More than 50 percent of Filipino families are either bereft of a mother or a father or both. Our best minds are abroad. We might as well declare bankruptcy and shut our country down.
posted by atticus at
3:17 PM
20 Comments:
Eh di ba sabi ni Gloria heroes daw ang mga OFWs? Kaya ayun, ginawang national export na natin and mga Pinoy. I can't blame them for seeking greener pastures though, the government itself isn't making it any easier for Juan dela Cruz.
I don't blame the laborers for trying to fulfill their dreams outside of the country. However, I despise our government for failing to come up with comprehensive policies that will stem the outward flow of workers.
The dollars that these OFWs are bringing in come at such a high social cost. Due to an inept government, we do not have a very clear picture of the price the country has paid for pursuing such a short-sighted policy. We do not know the number of broken families, the number of kids who have gotten into trouble, the number of teen pregnancies, the number of cases of depression, etc. that our people have suffered as a result of this forced separation.
I believe that once we have such statistics, they will certainly be eye-openers to all of us of how much we had paid in return for those dollars.
rudy, they are heroes. they sacrifice a lot. it's not easy to be away from your family.
i don't blame them for seeking greener pastures. it's a basic human right.
but to have to pack your bags to survive, merely to survive, is unjust.
it is government's job to ensure that every citizen is able to compete and complete his basic needs. kahit iyon, wala.
panaderos, kung aalis ang isang tao dahil mas malaki ang kita sa labas ng Pilipinas, okay sana.
kaso mas marami ang sentimyento na "mamamatay kami nang dilat kung di ako aalis."
there is even no program for the protection of our workers. it takes years for this inept government to even send a dead ofw's body home.
it is wrong to treat our citizens like a commodity we can sell to the outside world.
the efforts should also come from the people but the biggest factor comes from the leaders.
looking at GMA's administration, they're on a crisis. the problem is they tend to think that they are not.
we need leaders who are selfless. leaders who can dare radical moves and not just good speeches and temporary solutions.
dong, i also need to see a leader who can inspire me. when did we have that, a leader who inspires us as a people?
haaay.
ay si friedchicken umalis na den?!
hero ako. hero! superhero!!!
weeeeeee!!!!
doc duke, hero kita. *tsup*
umuwi ka na rito! maraming pasyente sa barrio na naghihintay sa iyo sa isabela. haha! nami-miss ka na rin ng mga manok na hinahagad mo sa farm niyo.
si fried egg, mag-aalaga ng mga hinayupak sa farms sa new zealand. mantakin mo iyon? iniwan ang gobyerno. hahaha.
i have this raket for a publication and was asked to write an article on "why filipinos should stay and not migrate." gad. it took me days to figure out what i was going to write. and even i wasn't convinced in the end.
i mean don't get me wrong, i could think of a couple of reasons why filipinos should stay here (including the reasons that I have) but someone might as well throw me tomatoes for being preachy.
korina, ikaw ngang bata ka huwag kang suwail. *pingot*
kung iyong matitino, mga magulang, mga anak ay hindi nagipit, tingin mo ba aalis sila sa sariling bayan?
ipagpapalit ba ng mga nananahimik sa kanayunan ang bagong huling isda, bagong pitas na mangga, bagong aning bigas, bagong bukas na bagoong sa pagpapakabusabos sa nigeria, saudi arabia, at kung saan-saan pang lupalop?
at ang mga ganid na nasa gobyerno, walang malasakit sa kapwa kaya pobre pa rin tayo.
hindi lahat gustong mag-alsa balutan. pero halos lahat ng umaalis, napilitan lang dahil walang oportunidad para buhayin at bigyan ng edukasyon ang mga anak.
me???? bat na naman ako naging suwail????
what i meant was, i could've enumerated so many reasons why filipinos should stay. PERO, para dun sa mga "napilitan lang dahil walang oportunidad para buhayin at bigyan ng edukasyon ang mga anak," whatever reason i write would be preachy. because like you said, the need to survive beats any other reason there is. and i can't impose my reason for staying on any of them.
i mean, who am i to say what would be good for those who has mouths to feed?
iyon po ang ibig kong sabihin :)
pssst. korina,ipagsa-shopping kita ng blouse mo. isuot mo, ha?
baka naman mamaya turleneck with long-sleeves 'yan???
hehe, sige para thayo.
meron akong nakilala, isa syang karpintero, dito masuwerte na raw kung makahirit sila ng minimum na sahod. ngayon, nasa middle east na sya. ikonbert sa peso, 15k daw ang sasahurin nya kada buwan. kahit daw malayo sa pamilya, mas mabuti na yun kesa problemahin kung anong kakainin bukas, at ipagpapaaral sa mga anak. anim pala ang anak nya, panganay 10 taon.
di lang matatalino ang umaalis ng pilipinas, skilled workers din ang nawawala.
nakakarelate ako sa post na 'to :)
anak ako ng isang ofw. dahil sa hirap ng buhay kahit ayaw umalis wala halos choice.
pambihirang sakripisyo ang umalis at iwan ang pamilya para maghanapbuhay sa ibang bansa.
sabi nga kung dati tiis basta sama sama, sa panahon ngayon di na uubra. matitiis bang makita na walang kinakain ang mga anak o hindi man lang mapag aral?
saludo ako sa lahat ng pilipinong tinitiis ang lungkot at nagsasakripisyo para sa pamilya.
sad piece pero maganda ang pagkakasulat.
but i disagree. our best minds are not a broad. they can also be a male.
corny ko.
huwaw! beatburn! pinuri mo sulat ko? may lagnat ka? wala, di ba? huwaw! that's like getting an A in statistics!
dhes, sobra na nga ang sakripisyo ng pilipino. parang pag ipinanganak kang pinoy, ipinanganak kang handa sa sakripisyo na mawalay sa magulang at sa magiging anak mo.
zherwin, hindi lang matatalino at skilled workers.
nanay, tatay, anak.
anak ng ___ talaga ang gobyerno natin.
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