Social Contract
Sunday, November 04, 2007
Grandma, You’re Safe Here
After the Glorietta incident, my grandma was shaken.
In a place like Hawaii, most Filipinos have no more plans of returning to their native land. Of course, my grandma is an exception. She still visits us once in every 2-3 years. She is a brave woman and that is why I’m proud of her. At the age of 78, she still works at the airport as a baggage lady. And since she already has the senior citizen card, she can no longer find any high paying job suited for her. Then you ask me, why does she still work?
I really don’t know.
In a place like Hawaii, most Filipinos have no more plans of returning to their native land. Of course, my grandma is an exception. She still visits us once in every 2-3 years. She is a brave woman and that is why I’m proud of her. At the age of 78, she still works at the airport as a baggage lady. And since she already has the senior citizen card, she can no longer find any high paying job suited for her. Then you ask me, why does she still work?
I really don’t know.
This is really funny but every time I go to our province, I often ask my parents why there are no malls, shops or even Jollibee in our place. You know why? It’s because folks there don’t know how to invest.
So what happens to their money?
“Itinatali, kinukumutan at tinatago sa medyas sabay pasok sa sapatos.”
Yep, that is what my dad told me. Ilocanoes are quite a laugh even if I’m an Ilocano too. It is very fascinating to see and experience their simple lifestyle. They walk instead of buying a car. Scooters and bikes are more popular than cars, jeeps and even tricycles. Tractors are not that popular in their fields as well, yet when you ask them where their relatives are; they are probably in Hawaii or London working as nurses.
As I was saying, my grandma doesn’t need to save or buy anything. She doesn’t need to work at all knowing that she already saved a lot in the past and has her pension. She lives in a big house, probably a mansion, with my aunt and cousins. But because of the hard times she experienced in the past, she doesn’t want to give herself a break. She works to save- She saves money for my cousins who grew tired of studying and others that I never met before. She still works for her children. Now that is really disturbing.
As I was sitting on my dad’s old wooden chair, my attention was caught by the stairs of my grand parents’ house, imagining my dad and his other siblings playing tag inside the house. It might have been a small house in the past. With 5 rooms for a 6 member family plus their grandparents, aunts and uncles, it feels so big now. One of my dad’s brothers now lives there with his wife and son. Ate Karen, one of his daughters, now lives in U.K. with her husband and two kids while Ate Princess, an accountant and also their daughter, stays in Manila.
It’s pretty quiet now. The medals of my cousins, my uncles and my dad are rusty but they still sway by the stairs to remind us the happy and proud days of our family.
So what happens to their money?
“Itinatali, kinukumutan at tinatago sa medyas sabay pasok sa sapatos.”
Yep, that is what my dad told me. Ilocanoes are quite a laugh even if I’m an Ilocano too. It is very fascinating to see and experience their simple lifestyle. They walk instead of buying a car. Scooters and bikes are more popular than cars, jeeps and even tricycles. Tractors are not that popular in their fields as well, yet when you ask them where their relatives are; they are probably in Hawaii or London working as nurses.
As I was saying, my grandma doesn’t need to save or buy anything. She doesn’t need to work at all knowing that she already saved a lot in the past and has her pension. She lives in a big house, probably a mansion, with my aunt and cousins. But because of the hard times she experienced in the past, she doesn’t want to give herself a break. She works to save- She saves money for my cousins who grew tired of studying and others that I never met before. She still works for her children. Now that is really disturbing.
As I was sitting on my dad’s old wooden chair, my attention was caught by the stairs of my grand parents’ house, imagining my dad and his other siblings playing tag inside the house. It might have been a small house in the past. With 5 rooms for a 6 member family plus their grandparents, aunts and uncles, it feels so big now. One of my dad’s brothers now lives there with his wife and son. Ate Karen, one of his daughters, now lives in U.K. with her husband and two kids while Ate Princess, an accountant and also their daughter, stays in Manila.
It’s pretty quiet now. The medals of my cousins, my uncles and my dad are rusty but they still sway by the stairs to remind us the happy and proud days of our family.
Oh how I wish my grandma decides to go home. I don’t want her to feel her age in another country. I want her home while she is still strong so that I could show her how safe our country really is. That she doesn’t need to tie her money every time she visits here and persuade her that banks here are safe. "smiles"
posted by "hean" at 11/04/2007 11:51:00 PM
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