⌛ Introduce myself

Hi Ron,

I could'nt help but notice your observation that in the Philippines there are only two types of people the poor and the poorer.

There are more economic levels like any country. We have the poor, the lower middle class, the middle middle the upper middle and the very rich.

The poorest are the people who in the remote areas who till the land of other people or in the cities where the live in the slums. The poor are mostly the day laborers, small fishermen and those who have no visible means of work but manage to survive by depending on some relatives.

The poor may also include those who work in the lower ranks of government or some big corporations, like utility,messengers and salesgirls and restaurant workers.

Among the lower middle class are the tenured but low ranking employees of government and big corporations. This can also include small businessmenand teachers.

The middle midlde would be the supervisors in governmnet and big firms and
and small time sugar planters , coconut farmers and rice farmers,and a lot of professionals. Families of overseas foreign workers and business men.
This may include retirees from the US including myself and my husband.

The upper middle would be the doctors, big time lawyers high government officials (sic) and the big land owners.

The rich of course are those who come from old money, who own blocks of buildings etc big land holdings etc.

The one big difference here is that society is stratified, the different classes hardly mix.

I know you are very new to this country to have noticed it, but it surprises me that a lot of expats seem to be aware only of the poor. They seem to look upon the locals as mendicants. On the other the locals look at the expats as those who run girlie bars and the like.

I think we can all overcome this if the local people would be more welcoming to the expats into their circles .and if the expats too would look upon the locals with open eyes.

Those like us who have lived in both worlds maybe able to bridge the gap.

Just my two cents worth.

 

It is the same the World over. I hope that the last statement can come true, maybe we can make that little difference, we can but try! Well said, Just hope it is not Too little Too Late.

 

Filisa having read most of Ron's posts I know that he has really only experienced the provinces and he is making comparisons based on having grown up where streets are paved and police really care about law breakers and receive a decent pay and politicians can be voted out of office. When many expats say "poor" we really are only are thinking economically and not spiritually because obviously most of the Filipino people are spiritually rich and that is a major attraction for us or we would not involve ourselves here.

 

very well said

felisa, very well said, you are to be commended for your statement. many people judge other people in different ways. I myself have never judged people by the way they live there life or how much money they have. If they are rich or poor it really dose not matter to me at all. In my lifetime I have met some very very rich people here in the U.S. and they where also some of the worst people I have even known. I do not judge people at all, thats not why I was put on this earth. When I first met my fiancee she was a little worried to tell me that her and her family are very poor. I told her those things mean nothing to me at all. what I am looking for in a wife is someone with a good heart and good family values. Someone who dose not care if I am rich or poor. Someone who will love me for who I am inside as a person.
I am a 47 year old man from the U.S I have had my share of girl friends here in the U.S over the years. I can honestly say with all my heart and soul the best women I have ever known Is my fiancee from the Philippines. She may be money poor but in my mind she is the richest person I have even known, in the way she lives her life, and the values her parents have tough her Is worth more then any amount of money. This might shock some people when I say this, But I am an American and I have lived here all my life. But I honestly think people from the Philippines are much better people no matter what class of money they are in . Good day to all and god bless

 

Actually felisa, you are taking my statement out of context. I was speaking relatively speaking, as compaired to the "poor" in the US. And I am sure, just like in every country that I have been to (many), there are lower, middle and upper classes of people, but the general population here is poor by any standards. Having said that, I come from upper middle class in the US and I now live in, and with, the lower class people here. I have chosen this way to live for many reasons, the main one being the people themselves. I have found a friendliness, a loyality and and morals among the people that I live with now that is unsurpassed anywhere.
My life here is not about money now, it is about peaceful living. My neighbors now are the best in the world in my opinion. And they have welcomed me far beyond what I expected.
And saying all of this, is not even mentioning my wife who is without question, the most wonderful lady on earth.
There are a lot of people on this earth that could learn from my neighbors.
As a saying goes in the US "money does not give a person "class"".
The barrio that I live in now is much classier than the Rivers Oaks section of Houston, TX.

 

Hi Ron,

How much Tanduay did you drink to create a beautiful piece of prose.......

 

Actually, no Tanduay at all, it was all Red Horse. And, if you think that was good, you should read my old resumé. You can't get a job making as much as I did, and doing nothing, without some "creative" thoughts in the resume.
And, I might add, the same thing goes for getting my wife to marry me above all others.
But seriously, I call it like I see it. I lived in an "executive" neighborhood in Houston, and I wouldn't give you a dime for any neighbor I had. Nor them for me I'm sure.
Here, everyone knew my name within 6 weeks, not because I was a "foreigner" but because I was family.
Now that I speak a little Visayan, it has only become better.