We were driving home yesterday afternoon down a concrete road just wide enough for 2 cars when we came to a van parked on one side with a gang of adults leaning all over it and talking to 2 people on a motorbike at the other side, after we horned them the motorbike pulled off the road and we started to pass, just as we got level with the van a small girl maybe 5 or 6 years old ran out from the gang of adults to be with the motorbike people, luckily my wife was driving slowly and we managed to brake and avoid the girl. Why do they have children if they don't want or are not able to look after them ? Maybe the answer is if you have 10 or 12 you won't miss losing 1 or 2.
Exactly as they hope the not so smart ones who won't bring home the rice to mom and dad will die off before mom and die retire...
I definitely go with this "retirement" plan. I look at the way my wife was treated by her parents, I find this very believable. After finishing her schooling, she was told not to search for a job or even worse plan for a career. Whilst her cousin (grew up together, same age, educated together, same schooling, best of friends then and still now) had the full support of her parents and followed a career that took her to Manila, Cebu, Arabia and now USA, Sherry was turned into a yaya for her mother. Her brothers moved on and she had free available time. Took in onto herself to do a Carers Course (Aged and Child) to enable overseas posting, with the help of her auntie. Parents found out and it was stopped by them. Comment to Sherry - "That will teach you to aim for something better than what you are". They then "allowed" to have a few jobs - never more than 2 years - picked by them. And insult added to insult - she was allowed to keep just enough income for travel and clothing. Anyways almost 10 years later. Her last job at Comelec came with a supervisor who noted Sherry's unhappiness and lost love soul. The same supervisor is now one of our best friends. She encouraged Sherry to search for something different - online dating. Online - at work - parents will never find out. And they didn't - till the day I arrived . Big Big boy, older man, swept their little housemaid (by now 32 years young) off her feet - up up and away. Anyways Sherry came to Australia and we married. Planned to stay in OZ but my health did not want to co-operate. So instead of trying in Australia to make it work, we returned back here. Build a house in Dumaguete (away from parents in Tanjay). Supported the love of my life finding the strength to stand up to her parents in spirit and voice. They accused her of not being married, being the shame of the family, not being as good as her cousin, being with such an old man and then IT IS YOUR JOB TO LOOK AFTER US - LOOK AT WHAT WE HAVE DONE FOR YOU - WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN WE ARE GETTING OLD - THAT IS THE FUTURE OF THE DAUGHTER. And my little lady sunshine let fly. Years and years of anger, frustration, tears, sorrow, disappointments, shame, etc were let loose. Anyways - I think I went off-track a little here, but you are right. It is the Pinoy Retirement Plan.
My gf's "family unit" is something beyond my comprehension.....and my relationship with my parents and sisters is completely alien to my gf. I tell my gf every time she has an argument with her family (and if she is on the moral high ground) to just stop communicating and buying the rice until they have apologized for acting the way they did. She has all the right bargaining chips....starve them out I say (literally). They will come around and see the error of their ways when the rice runs dry, even if the good behavior is just until the next bag of rice finds it's way to the rice cooker. She never does though, she caves in and calls to apologize for something she should not apologize for. I used to get frustrated with it but I've learned to just stop paying attention to the family drama, even if they are talking smack about me. I just don't care about that Gerry Springer stuff anymore. Luckily the youngest sister got married to a Brit and moved to the UK. Since then I haven't been asked to buy a single grain of rice! Really wish mine would do that and stop taking that anger out on me. lol Joke na lang, she's the sweetest girl ever. Spoiler: .... The sweetest girl while we are out on in public that is.....
Charity just breeds contempt. After a few years my better half finally realized that due to her Families actions, and it's been no more for a long time now. I imagine they just bark at the moon now, tough cookies!
