Di Ba Totoo Naman?

Sige aminin mo, kahit saan ka ipatak kaya mong maging masaya at magpasaya ng iba. 

Filipinos take the warmth and laughter as well as the fun and funk that makes every moment with them even in the middle of the desert, in a submarine, or in the coldest part of the world a hell of a good time. 

So yeah. 

To be a Filipino, It's just fun ANYWHERE.

Pray for the victims of Sendong

The news hit me when I got back online last Sunday. There were TOPpers who were being checked up on by other TOPpers. I didn't know what was going on. Then the articles that I read made my eyes grow bigger. It was seven days before Christmas. How could this happen seven days before Christmas?

652 Dead 808 missing in PH Floods was not the kind of news one should be reading several days before Christmas.The rain and the flash flood took so many by surprise when Typhoon Sendong hit their homes.

Manila Mommy listed the ways to donate and help out. 
Travel on a Shoestring lists the information here too 

I ask all to join me in prayer for the many lives lost and many that are still missing that they might find refuge in the Almighty or be returned to the arms of the ones they love.

Aming ama

Nawa ay gabayan mo kami

sa oras na tila nalimot na

ang init ng pagmamahal 

ng aming minamahal

nawa ay madala mo kami

sa tamang daan 

patungo sa aming nawawalang

kaibigan, kamag-anak

at kasamahan

tulungan mo po kaming tanggapin

na ang buhay ay may sugpungan

at muli pa ay buhayin ang pag-asa

na may bukas pa para bumuong muli

Hinihiling naming ang mga aral

na dala ng sakit at pagkawala 

ay hindi pumigil sa aming

magkaisang muli

Sapagkat muli pa sa iyong piling

sa takdang panahon

kami ay muling magkakasama

sa iyong kaharian magpakailanman.

Because we all deserve to be home this Christmas...If there are any information regarding helping and donation links and hotlines you are aware of, please comment here. Thanks. 

Louise Rui

7:31am Dec 19

Panginoon, nawa'y masimulan po ang araw na ito na puno ng pag-asa.
Dinggin mo po ang aming panalangin at kami po ay iyong patatagin.
Bigyan po ninyo kami ng sapat na lakas upang malagpasan ang mga matitinding pagsubok na sa amin ay nagdaan.
Hawakan po ninyo ang aming mga kamay upang makaahon sa trahedyang dumating. Sa iyong pagsilang kami po ay iyong yakapin at tulungang paghilumin ang aming mga damdamin.

Haplusin po ninyo ang mga puso ng mga nawalan ng minamahal at bigyan ng pag-asang makita ang mga nawawala.
Pagalingin po ninyo ang sinumang may sakit, at protektahan naman po ninyo ang mga wala. Humihingi po kami ng inyong kapatawaran sa aming mga kasalanan at sa pagtatapos po ng taon na ito, nawa'y yakapin mo kami ng iyong pagmamahal.

Sa iyong kaarawan kami po ay nagpapasalamat para sa mga buhay na naligtas at sa mga anghel na siyang nagbibigay pag-asa sa bawat isa at sa amin upang patuloy na lumaban at manatiling matatag.

AMEN.

+++

Update

Please read this poem or share it for people who are grieving and in pain.

A Saint's Prayer

Santiago as judge to Int'l Criminal Court

It's great news for us. It's excellent news for her.

But I fear that she will now leave a void in the Senate that no one in pumps can replace. I am sorry to say this, but for many years, the Senate has yet to churn out another Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago.

She has her moments. She's had her scandals and issues. And her laugh is legendary amongst those who try to copy her on stage. But her rep sheet is something that can not be ignored.

True enough she is going ahead and representing the country in a higher court. But who would pick up the slack? No offense to the other great senators, there is but a handful of you by the way. And I am in no way talking about those whose previous job is to smile for the camera.

Who would come up with bills that are focused on making the lives of women, the common man and education better?

I am sorry but I don't know of anyone who can.

Still congratulations, Senator Miriam, I am sure you would do us proud.

Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington - FTW

The cast of Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington Roderick Paulate, Janice De Belen, Eugene Domingo, John Regala, Lauren Young, Kerbie Zamora and Martin Escudero made my day when I saw this movie.

I didn't care if I laughed too much or that other people seem to be expecting more from the movie than it was willing to offer.

It was funny. I had a great time. The quirky bits that only people who are familiar or have gay friends can get made the movie a feel good movie. Believe me I would never intentionally go into a movie that boasted zombies. I have a strict no horror movie rule. It's a long story but the bottom line is I would like to keep my zombie in my Plants vs Zombie past and not in my dreams.

I hoped that the babaylan information was placed in a separate clip or was placed before the movie and not during the credits. People had already walked out. It was cool to know (but I had known for a while now that effeminate men where considers holy men in the past - well most of them at least). You see despite the images of Lapu-Lapu swimming in our heads about that time, gays have been around since the dawn of time. We only need to watch Amaya to get an idea of how macho the men are supposed to be at that time, but the babaylans (shamans) were either old women or old men. And the most fab of all, some of the men were actually gay.

Like the clip said, they were believed to have the ability to transcend this plane to the others. They are in tuned with the duality of the universe than we ever were.

There are lines in the movie that are prickly and made fun of people who tried to bring down the third sex. There were also some over-generalizations.

The third sex despite having been clout together are still individuals. They pay taxes, love, and have a voice, albeit they can use phrases that are their own. I consider it almost like a dialect, something that other people can understand, can learn to speak but sometimes can be their way of identifying one of their own.

+++

On Hannah and Remington

"Wala kang karapatang tawaging bading. Dahil ang mga bading na kakilala ko lumalaban. Buong buhay nila lumalaban sila." 

Sorry naman daw at nakakarelate ako sa character ni Hannah dito. Well, hindi kami magkasing-ganda pero spunky si Ate. And I had a gay boyfriend too. Yiz, aware ang lola mo na kafatid ang boylet so wit na magtanong kung howisthebecauseofthesomehow nagka-jacksonan, hmkay?

But the thing about my gay ex is that he gave me lessons and I learned them quite well. We are still friends, at the very least I don't hate any of my exes (in general) and I have genuine concern for them. I hope JL got to see the movie. ^.^

I imagined that Janice and John would be us in the future had we ended up together. Kebs, eh di together kumempalar, di ba?

http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/11165/plants-vs-zombadings

ang cute nito, dapat ito na lang ang poster ahahaha

Come on, Let's Travel! (Tara, byahe tayo!)

Pilipinas, Tara na! v.1 from drsus on Vimeo.

Someday I want to travel around the country. I would forever be thankful for having friends like Fried, Ji and Rein for being travel savvy as they are. I wouldn't have been able to mark off Zambales ever if not for them. ^.^ I am really a coward about these things. ^.^

ANAWANGIN ADVENTURE (part 1)

WHY I WANT TO QUIT SMOKING

I ran after a bus. I ran so fast that I went past the provincial stop at Magallanes.

I think if I had a camera that was good in my cp I would've recorded the whole thing.

Basically, this is the gist, the trip that we needed to catch was the 3pm bus at Victory Liner Pasay. They all thought I could make it. They thought my work ends at 12. I dunno where they got it might be something I said or didn't say. So there. I left work at 1345. Stupid me bought shorts etc at St. Francis. So I got on the bus late. The bus driver said I would get there after three.

Lesson: When your friends tell you to get on an effin' cab, get on a fracking cab.

Lesson 2: Ride a MIA bus to go to Victory Liner PASAY. It takes 30 mins to get there. 

I had to get out of the bus at Guadalupe. There were no cabs there that would stop. I didn't want to stand in the middle of the highway just to hail one so I got on another bus, the same kinda bus.

They told me to get off at Mantrade and RUN for dear life to get to the other side and wait at the provincial stop. This was the first time in my entire life that I prayed for traffic to be heavy.

I got there and I even tried running after the buses that passed the provincial stop thinking the bus I needed to get on had already passed.

Long story short I answered Fried's call and when he asked me "Naka-yellow ka ba?" (Are you wearing yellow?) I said yes and dropped the call. I got on the bus and rode in front. I was hot, nearly dehydrated and panting when I got there. Fried was upfront and moved to the back. I sat there until San Fernando. TWO HOURS LATER. It was reminiscent of my one inch sitting training crap in ROTC. Still my ass was three times bigger since college so the relatively five inches wide seat with padding felt like an effin inch.

I finally got to the back of the bus and sat with my friends. I know that if they weren't my real friends, they would've killed me already. I think they had every motivation and reason to do so.

It made for MIRACLE NUMBER 1 for our trip to Zambales. There would be setbacks and mishaps but there would be blessings and adventure as well.

Lesson 3: Quit smoking and get back to exercising. That speed and height should not have been so hard had I been well-trained and toned.

Lesson 4: The bus time for the bus we rode at 5:30, 9 something, 12:00 and 3:00pm. The next one is  past 11:00.The buses to Olongapo start at 2am and have a 30-minute interval. 

Lesson 5: Never EVER travel without even a tiny-*ss bottle of water.


Things to buy : A good The North Face Travel backpack. 

Things to do/learn: How to get to Victory Liner Espana.

February 25 Musings

My mom didn't go because she was pregnant. Obviously, my father didn't go because they were waiting for me to arrive. I didn't know anything that happened. My mom loves yellow too. At some point she had the Cory hair. ^.^ And coupled with thick cory glasses.

But now that some one else in the Aquino family is president I wonder, where was the Obama-like hope that he promised. Like his mother, he also seemed reluctant to become the president. Would history repeat itself?

Or would things be a little better this time? Or are slogans going to remain that way. I believe that more things would be exposed this time around. But that doesn't mean that things would not be hidden from the people as well. There is more accountability because the media is more severe and technology makes information easily available. One wrong move and a president with a new car and a new date can be splattered all over the internet and twitter would be raving about that.

I am confused why this is a working holiday. Couldn't he make them take a day off, those who toil day in and day out to remember this day and maybe find the time to tell their kids why February 25 was so important in history.

Oh well, I think, Mr. President you forgot a little aspect of that day that we remember. The masses included people who walked to the street from their work places, probably risking losing their jobs to support a great cause. Surely the students were there as well but wouldn't the majority be people who are in their forties and fifties now?

I am sure Makati would be a little yellow today. I saw the decorations yesterday and I remembered suddenly. I am supposed to buy my mom a yellow Cory shirt. She likes the color after all.

Traveller Grade : D

My Lakbayan grade is D!
How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!
Created by Eugene Villar.


I need to remedy this whole thing. I want to be able to add to the places that I have visited. Since my job offers some unique holidays when I don't have to go to work like the Lunar New Year and Korean Thanksgiving. I can use those times to go out. 


Too bad I promised Angel to go out during the Sol-al.  T_T I'll just make it up to her. I also need to tell my mom about our team trip to Pangasinan and Baguio. 


The last time I was in Baguio I went to my friend's house and I was with the corps commander of the ROTC. She was a UPLB student then and I was a COCC like her. He was courting her then and her mom hated soldiers and Marcos. He on the other hand, wanted to emulate the man's achievements. Or something like that. I ate breaded spinach and had a lot of fun. I still have the long-sleeved turtleneck that I bought in an ukay there for 50php. The PMT shirt I bought for a hundred has long been stolen from the clothesline so I might look for that again. I went to the PMA then and had a lot of fun since I had wanted to be a soldier then. 


Now she is a former Miss Earth Water and full-time flight attendant. He finished Westpoint and he is in the Air Force. I am a teacher and I still haven't ridden a plane. 


I wonder what Team Max & Co would do when we visit Ate Mhel's place in Pangasinan and I go back to Baguio once again. 


Gosh, I wish I could drag a boy with a car to this trip. If not for me, maybe for Ai. ^^

Champion of Change : Jorge de Guzman

Jorge de Guzman

http://www.cbc.ca/change/2010/10/jorge-de-guzman.html

Age: 61

Volunteers in:  Republic of the Philippines
Category: International - Social Justice
Organization: Sarnia School of Martial Arts



I read his profile and I liked his advocacy. In light of what happens in the Visconde massacre trials and in the country's women in general. His advocacy strikes at my need to protect women in this country of all levels. 

Manic Monday and M's Demise

I was playing Frontierville while editing a T.O.P. novel when I caught a gay friend who was working in Jeddah online. Let's call him Will. Will was the person who got me to reconnect with my ex-boyfriend. Let's call my ex, Max. Anyway, Will was thinking I was going to get back together with Max so he was doing the whole "keep your enemies closer thing with me" which was unnecessary because eventually, both of us gave Max up. So with Max out of the picture I am hoping I will have a new gay friends. Honestly, I prefer their honesty and in your face attitude over straight guys who lie to you because he doesn't want to hurt your feelings. Okay, I degress. Going back to the story.

Will has been "chummy" with a new guy. Let's call him, Marlon. So Marlon has a sister in Abu Dhabi. Let's call her Magda.

Magda worked for an abusive boss. Let's just say he tried to have a taste of something he was not supposed to and she fought him off. I think. Let's just say his pleasure rod would be black and blue for a while. Then being the prick that he is, he told the local police that Magda was a thief. Let's just say that her status in that country was less than legal so they just hushed it up and deported her.

http://dianedimond.net/the-big-blue-secret/

http://ofwempowerment.wordpress.com/2010/10/07/true-or-not-we-deserve-to-know/

The fun part starts here. They didn't give her any money to go home to her province. Wonderful, right? Fracking politicians, where are your pompuss ass promises now? Is this a sign that to the President, OFWs are really not a biggie?

Will told me about Magda's plight. They didn't know how to contact her and where she was at that time. So they asked me to call her. Luckily she was a Globe user. I had 300 pesos to my name. I asked my mom to send me load but it came after all the drama was done.

But still, thanks mom. I'll pay you during the weekend, promise.

I thought it was all a joke until she replied and told me where she was. I was hoping she was still in the city so I could sneak her in my apartment. Since my roommate doesn't seem to want to tell me if she is EVER moving in or not, then might as well right? But I had neither a futton nor food to accomodate anyone. But like my parents taught me, if you can help, help, God will provide.

So, since she was way over there all I could do was help them get her information, full name and address and the fact that she had IDs with her so that they could send her some money and she could claim it. Will had told me that some deportees have nothing but papers at times. So I was really worried. Magda told me that she had 15 pesos to her person. I later send her 30 load so she would be able to UNLICALL and call some relatives. THANK YOU GLOBE FOR YOUR USEFUL PROMOS. Anyway, all this time I was thinking, I never thought being a PEBA OFW supporter would feel like this. ^_^; It was unnerving. So this was what my mom felt whenever something nasty happens to her OFW friends. And Magda was a stranger.


She somehow got to Bacoor.  And she was staying somewhere that was asking her to pay rent. Seriously whoever brought her there and told her that she needed to pay on top of everything that happened to her is a dick. I wish I found out sooner. I wish my Bacoor friends lived there at this time or had their own places but they don't. So all I could tell Magda was to sit tight, wait for the money that would arrive on Wednesday and hope that she doesn't go nuts over hunger and depression.

But PINAYs are made of tougher things. You can never bring us down even when you kick us out of your so called rich countries.

PEBA GALA NIGHT 2010

http://www.pinoyblogawards.com/2010/11/peba-2010-gala-night-invitation-video.html

 I suddenly miss making videos. I don't have time lately. I still need to fix my laptop's memory and burn things that I don't use on a daily basis. Promise talaga I would buy dvds on my next pay.

I actually bought a blouse and a bling-bling for this event. I plan to wear the black pants Reina gave me (despite it being old na) and so I still need girly shoes and a belt that would hold my gut. ^_^ My tummy is still protruding but I'll just inhale half of the time and exhale when no one is looking. Because at the rate I am not eating rice, there wouldn't be enough time for me to flatten it. That and the fact that I am not exercising. I plan to tell my mom everything that would happen. It's a little hard to take them all to the event so it would just be me and my friend Helene who doesn't have work at that time. She's had experiences with regards to being abroad and living there as a child of an OFW. We are still unsure whether she would become a full-blown OFW or not but that is all in the future. If I could I would drag my friends to the event, all Makati-based ones that can make it, at least. But I can't. I was hoping that Reina would be home but she couldn't make it here for a few reasons. It would have been awesome to have both of us in one PEBA event since she is the reason I know about PEBA in the first place.

I feel a little torn lately since my boss told us that we have to work on the 24th of December. My parents had planned to go to Isabela (for the first time in many years) to celebrate Christmas there. The trip would take 13 hours by bus and I refuse to spend Christmas on a bus like I did last year. So I might not go with them. This would be the first Christmas EVER in my 25 years that I would not have to eat my mom's pasta pa-cham and whatever it is that would be our Noche Buena.

But I guess I could stay since my nephews would be all alone during Christmas. I could take them out and we could have fun. That is the least I could do for my ninong Dante who can't be here to be their Santa (although they already know that Santa is their dad). But I wonder if my my parents can take good pictures of my sister's trip (first time as a walking and talking child) to Isabela. They really suck at taking pictures, you see. And it would be a shame if she couldn't get a chance to have good pictures of her trip.

I will have to decide between what I need to do to provide money for my debts or to make memories with my family. But in case I don't go to Isabela, there is always a next time. But I wonder, what if my next boyfriend is there. *laughs* As if. I don't even know how to speak Ilocano. *yes I am slightly ashamed of that but my dad never uses it so what am I supposed to do?* Probably because one time a lady thought I was a boy and was talking to my crazy mother (who understood a bit of Ilocano) and she was actually telling me (who was only saying yes in Ilocano) that I would be perfect for her DAUGHTER. my language acquiring brain (I sometimes understand words for some reason and get to read body language well) made me realize what she was saying so I said that I was a girl (despite the elephant pants and large FUBU shirt). The clinger? The lady's son drove by on a scooter. *facepalm* Did I mention I was around fifteen and was tall for my age so she thought I was a college student. *two handed facepalm*

Anyway, I am ranting again. So back to the Gala event. I hope my pimples let up and that I would respond well to cosmetics though I don't plan to put on a lot. I hope I can get a good camera and use it. *or win one if there is even a chance of that*

Still I know that come rain or high water, I will go to Greenhills. *Did I mention it's my first time there?* So PEBA is popping one of my cherries. ^_^ Oh wait, this is my first nomination and my first blog awards night. What do you know, it's three firsts. Three cherries in one pop, way to go PEBA! ^_^

P.I.N.A.Y. ako, ikaw PINAY KA BA?

I am a  PINAY.

Pretty
Intelligent
Naughty (or Nice)
Awesome and
Yummy

So, ikaw? PINAY KA BA?

if you are? Plurk it, Tweet it, Share it to your friends!

Leave your comment here too.

GO PINAYS, redefine yourselves! Eliminate prejudices! Turn haters to lovers and spread your PINAY-ness to the universe!

BE LOUD, BE PROUD! BE A P.I.N.A.Y. !

PINOY PRIDE weekend

Last Saturday I went home exhausted from selling GUTOM and YO,BO! KOMIKS at the KOMIKON 2010 in Starmall.

Last Sunday, Manny won his eight world title.

Doesn't Filipino talent just not make your heart swell?

There was a comic book about Manny at the Komikon. And as much as I consider him a great boxer, selling a comic book about him for almost 500 pesos is just overkill. But hey, if it sells then why the hell not, right?

My Mom's Quasi-orphanage by Niña Simon

My Mom's Quasi-orphanage by Niña Simon

published July 19, 2010 9:40 PM

My mother has never been out of the country.

She has never been on an airplane.

But she has been a surrogate mother to so many children of OFWs that it seems her burden has been heavier than those who have left their kids.

My Tita Loida is a domestic helper in Hong Kong. She left her young daughters in my mother's care.

My Tito Pako is in Italy. He met his wife, a Bulaceña in Italy. They have two kids. My mother constantly checks on their children who are in Bulacan.

My Tita Clemen is in Dubai. My uncle died while she was away. She left her two sons in my mother's care.

Batangueños are known for being extremely clannish. This is true for most Filipinos here and abroad. In the beginning, poverty was the reason why people left the country. Now, they can't seem to find a reason to come back. I fear that some of them have forgotten why they left in the first place.

People like my mother bridge the gap between those who are left behind and those who are in another land.

For the longest time I have heard about and seen relatives leave Batangas, Isabela, and Laguna to try their luck in earning more money for their families. In the beginning it was the men. They braved the desert, the haughty Europeans, and the discrimination that came with doing manual labor. This was considered the right thing to do for men since they needed to be the provider for their families. People perceived that the fathers were doing their paternal duty in leaving their wives and kids in the Philippines.

Then came waves and waves of mothers leaving their toddlers. I suddenly had two female cousins living in our house most of the time. People didn't like this new trend. Fathers that were left behind could barely function with work and housework in their hands. Somehow it was the woman's fault if the family didn't survive this change. She ruined everything for leaving them behind.Even if their husbands were the ones who didn't keep his vows, somehow people chewed out the woman instead of the man. “He was lonely”, they would say. I couldn't help but shake my head when I heard that.

My mom raised us alongside my “adoptive” sisters. I often hear her roll call for the people who needed to be at our table for meals and it often included the girls. If that wasn't the case, she would check up on them to make sure that they had eaten. When their father went home later and later into the night, they had to sleep over at our house from time to time.

They grew up with toys, pictures of their mother in Hongkong, and my mother's constant nagging. I think she took it personally when the eldest girl ended up repeating her mother's situation, having a child while she was still young. She felt like she failed to raise her well. In our family, the welfare of the daughters, their mistakes, and their triumphs are perceived to be based on the alpha female in their lives. I saw how hard it was for my mother that she had not done a good enough job in instilling traditional values into my cousin's heads. As her eldest daughter, I had to suffer the nagging and the suspicious looks. I think I managed to dodge it jokingly, enough to ease her fears.

My mother's youngest brother had been conned by a trusted family friend before his wife managed to get a chance to go to Qatar. While she was there, my uncle died in his sleep.We would later find out that he had a legitimate job offer in Canada. She went home for the funeral but had to go back abroad so she could earn enough for their two sons' education. Once again, after the blow that hit her when my cousin got pregnant, my mother was a surrogate mother again.

Because my cousin's were in the same bed as their dad when he died, the kids didn't want to sleep in their old room. My younger cousin who couldn't sleep unless he had his hand on his dad's ear clung to my mom more, to my little sister's chagrin. They slept in our second floor room with my father, mother and sister. It was a good thing that by that time I was in Makati, my younger brother was in Diliman, and the youngest son was in Los Baños. When we all go home from our separate locations one had to take dibs on a bed or end up sleeping on the couch. The legitimate kids ended up feeling like we were the guests in our own home. But I didn't care, at least not all that much, because my mom told me, “Who else would take care of them?”

My mom doesn't mind disciplining, feeding, and loving my cousins. What I have seen as an adult that I missed when I was still a kid, was that my mom hated it when the parents thought that she was not giving their kids the money that they sent over. My mother had a mantra, “Never spend other people's money.” Both my parents believed that so much that their bosses trusted them with money matters completely. I started realizing that my mother was slowly becoming the victim in the situation. She didn't want to look like the enemy, but there was a time that she had to tell the boys the awful truth. Their mother, my aunt, had found someone new, she didn't have a job and there was no money coming in.

I don't know how hard it is to be far from my homeland. I have heard my friends, my relatives and former lovers talk about how difficult it is to be in a place where there is nothing else that they can do but work, eat, and sleep. I am an advocate that they are heroes in their own right. But let's not forget that there are those who decided that they can work here, care for the young here and fill in the gaps here in the Philippines.

I believe both deserve our gratitude.

+++

Click on the picture to see the other nominees and vote for your favorite!

"Strengthening the OFW Families: Stronger Homes for a Stronger Nation." 

++++


Reminders for OFW parents of the 22nd century


1. The Social Networks are your bestfriends...and your worst enemies.

Make sure that you know how to use the social site that your child uses. It's not enough that you know how to use the chat options of Yahoo! Messenger. You can get tidbits of information from their comments, posts, as well as what to get them on their birthday, from Facebook, Multiply, Twitter, Plurk or Friendster. Let's be honest, parents are pretty much shunned by teenagers. A little cyber-stalking might come in handy. But don't be the "diary-reading" parent that my mom was. Your kid might just end up writing in code like I did just to keep some things secret. Don't worry, if your kid needs help or "The talk" they would figure out that you are the ones to go to unless you do not allow free speech in your relationship or your home.

2. Money isn't the only thing that they want from you.

Time is indeed something that is more important that some parents, OFW or otherwise, have forgotten that their kids need from them. I hated my parents for hovering for the most part of my life. (I still need to text my mom when it rains or there is something major on the news.) But I consider myself lucky now because I have this assurance that I have my parents to back me up.

3. We are not lazy just because we don't want to leave the country.

I have heard parents insisting that their kids follow in their footsteps. When their kids refuse to leave the country and work abroad they find it somewhat offensive since they think their kids demean their work. We don't. We really don't. But we would just want to gain more experience at home so we can get better options. You gave us the chance to get the best education we can afford, let us give back to the local industry, then we will think about international employment. Or we could just find options here that would pay the same.


Besides, mom and dad, we have a new president. Who knows? Maybe he would do a better job than that lady who...you know who I mean.

4. Try not to pick up where you left off. 

Most OFW parents fail to remember that their kids grew up while they were away. I don't mean they are being daft, it's just they find it hard to adjust how they treat their kids since they missed actual years in their kids' lives.


Don't cuddle a teenage. Don't be too strict towards an adult. Don't blame yourself if we have flaws or tantrums. We are adjusting to having a complete family too. Don't force things. Just let the love speak for itself. We know you are our parents, you don't have to scream it at our faces. We love you, we are just in the "teenage rebellion" phase. We'll outgrow it. And did I mention, we love you?

5. If you can, BE PRESENT in major celebrations.

We know you are doing this for us. But we want to thank you too by showing you the medals we have won, the awards that we have received, and the fruits of your labors. Those days are milestones in our lives so we want you in the picture, we want you in the memory, we want to hug and thank you in person. So if you can, please make time.

Pinaywriter a.k.a. Niña Rita Simon is an online English teacher, an unpublished novelist, part-time SEO writer, and comic book collaborator. When she's not writing Tagalog pocketbooks, meeting deadlines or editing comic balloons she finds time to infuriate or make her friends laugh.