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Tuesday, October 28, 2008

The Love of a Mother

Last Saturday I was able to watch an episode of Maalaala Mo Kaya (MMK). MMK features true to life stories of their letter senders and I could say that this was one of their episodes that literally broke my heart. The letter is from an OFW who was strained to borrow money to be able to work in Italy so that she could support her 4 children. The story started with how she was forced into an early marriage by her parents when she was only 15 years old. And because of this grew resenting her married life and her children. Until her husband decided to leave her for another woman. By this time her children especially the eldest had nothing but deep resentment for her. Years passed and she realised how fast her children has grown and she noticed further how much she is affected by them already...she has found renewed love for her children (finally!). She was then given the chance to work in Italy was sent back to the Philippines because of a lawsuit filed against her for estafa. To cut to the chase, she was imprisoned with a lifeterm. Her eldest daughter had no choice but become a gro to feed her younger siblings and because of a spat she had with her mother got married in no time and left her younger siblings. The imprisoned mother made sure her children lived near her prison cell. And during this time her children lived on food she would throw from her prison window outside which would send her kids running to get the food and make sure it does not scatter on the ground. The food came from leftover food by other prisoners including her ration. Up to this time she is still imprisoned but her children have decided to live it through with her. 

My friends, I am a wife to a devoted and loving husband and a mother to 3 beautiful children, and through God's Mercy and Love my husband and I have been able to go through life's hurdles together hard as it may seem. I can never imagine a life as difficult as this mother's.  Our President is also a woman and a mother but thinking back it irks me how she could let loose a criminal (who happens to be a brother of a political ally) who killed 2 teenagers in cold blood and let people like this Filipina OFW suffer a lifetime inside the prison just because of an unpaid debt. Where is justice? Why does justice seem to be elusive to the poor masses and effortless to the rich and friends of...? 


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

sad story. I have to watch this one and I need to watch and read news from the Philippines. I don't have any clue about the murder you said:(

I can't imagine the life of those kids with their imprisoned mother.What we actually need in the Philippines is to have a law to have certain amount of kids based on salary!~ Clearly there's a lot of kids who are affected by the parents who are too lazy to make money to support for their family but industrious enough to fulfill their lust!
The last time we visited Manila, we saw a father with 2 kids and an infant sleeping in the side of the road. I don't usually give anything to people like that because it will only give them a reason that they can just get free stuff and why bother to work? but that vacation, everytime we passed them sleeping we ended up leaving them food for his kids to eat.

Anonymous said...

what a sad, sad story! and you are right, GMA is a mother and yet... i dont know, i just hope the people who have closed their eyes and minds and hearts and souls to the people who are really in need could open them in time.