PCPhilippines Update #30

New Neighbors:  We had two boys move into the tree next door.  Huh?  Yep.  We have a tree in the empty grass lot next door.  I was walking home from school last week when I heard voices from the tree.  I looked up and saw two teenaged boys up there.  They looked like they had moved in.

They had beds made of potato sacks, expertly tied up at the ends to branches with rope.  They situated their beds approximately 12 and 15 feet above the ground, which is pretty smart because most bugs don't operate at those heights.  All they had for possessions was a radio with two sets of earphones.  They were there on Monday all during the day so I'm assuming they aren't in school.  They were there Tuesday morning and I didn't get their names when I took pictures of them on Tuesday at lunch.  They have not been there during the late afternoon or early evening and we wonder what they are out doing in the community then.

They are situated so they can see right into our back yard and into Alana's changing and work out room.  I've been trying to keep track of when they are around and not just so we don't unintentionally invite them to do something unwarranted to our place.  Sad that I'm thinking that and I am.  People have really gone to a lot of effort us to warn us about safety and security here in Dumaguete City.  We find our community pretty safe from theft and incidents.  We are cautious to not leave our apartment unlocked when we are gone or things out that people might take.  It's a little unsettling that they can see us come and go and I often leave things outside in the back to air out or dry.

I remember how much fun we had growing up in Fournetville in Lafayette, Louisiana.  There were 22 of my first cousins living in our neighborhood.  We had many tree houses and would hang out in trees all the time, watching people go by, eating food from our gardens, getting up as high as we could, figuring out how to get from tree to tree, building little places to sit and lay down.  It was fun.

Alana and I are wondering if the tree next door is just a place for the boys to sit and they actually live somewhere else.  We saw two different boys leaving that lot a few days later and Alana asked them in Cebuano if they lived there.  They answered in Cebuano that they just sat up there.  So we're not yet sure what's up.  Get it . . . what's up?  Time will tell.

Filipino Sucker.  They say there's a sucker born every minute.  Well, I feel like I've been a sucker before and . . . I was born again today.

I had just left NORSU.  There are lots of students every day who say, "Hello Sir Jacques." and I cheerfully respond with a, "Maayong buntag pud" or "Maayong udto" or "Maayong hapon pud"depending on the time of day.  Alana often tells me that LCP kids come back to the LCP campus and mention they saw me that day.  Alana encourages them to talk to me and let me know they are from LCP yet none have taken her up on the dare yet, I must be scary :-)

Today, when I was leaving the gates of campus, a young lady student turned and said, "Hello sir."  I said hello back in her language and wondered again if she was an LCP student.  I walked along thinking that I want to start being assertive and ask students if they are from LCP when they see me outside of class and take the time and effort to acknowledge me.

Just as I was thinking that on my walk, a young lady from about 30 yards away at an intersection on a road behind the Dumaguete Track & Field Complex put a big smile on her face and got excited when she saw me.  I thought it might be an LCP student as she reeled me in by hopping up and down a bit with excitement and talking to me (even though I couldn't understand just yet what she was saying).  I hadn't noticed who she was standing with and as she sucked me into the fold with her smile and excitement. I then realized I was with her mother, her grandmother, her younger brother of about age 8, and the mother was holding an infant. 

I thought they might be an LCP family.  I had been introduced to the community of about 800 people at a church service earlier this month.  After that I ran into families in the streets and markets that would say they remembered me from LCP.  At this point I still didn't know who this family was or understand what was going on or what they were saying.  I just smiled.  They kept shoving papers in my face, saying, "Medicine.  Admit to the hospital.  Hungry." while rubbing their bellies.  Time out!

Jufer is an amazing Peace Corps trainer that works with the Peace Corps' CYFs, of which Alana is one.  CYF stands for Child, Youth, Family.   CYFs are volunteers that have counseling skills or backgrounds and work with the street children and the poorest of poor families.  Jufer is highly regarded as one of the most authentic and empowering trainers the Peace Corps Philippines has.  He told Alana's group (who told me) not to give money to the street children or families because when they can make even the smallest living on the street begging they are not encouraged to look into the assistance they can get from many private and public services like LCP or DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development).

Word is; many street people don't like services they have to participate in and contribute their time and efforts to in order to get help and assistance.  It makes sense that it's easier to just beg for money on the street.  They don't want to enroll their children in school.  They don't want to learn a craft or trade.  They don't want to work or answer to anyone for anything.  They just want money.  Alana learned that street kids, after they've bought ice cream, spend their hard earned street pesos in internet cafes on FACEBOOK!  These dirt poor children can often skillfully maneuver themselves through their Facebook accounts yet don't own shoes, they don't have a means to stay clean, and they can't multiply, use spell a word, or point out Asia on a map!

Back to my becoming a sucker for this Filipino street family.  They looked nice enough, weren't as dirty as street families I'd seen in the past, yet they were definitely after me to take care of them.  I have been conscious about seeing these situations coming from far off and think I've handled them well; I look people in the eye, I smile, I often touch them on the hands or head, I do not engage in conversation with them, I do not stop, and I do not give them money!  I keep in mind what Jufer said, "Help them hit rock bottom so they will take advantage of the Filipino systems set up to help them."  Makes sense to me.

I was taken by surprise, must have been in shock, and it all happened so fast.  The daughter, mother, and grandmother were all talking to me at once.  They had suckered me into their little circle and before I knew it I was reaching into my pocket.  No sooner had I reached into my pocket and the INFANT put out his little beggar hand to receive whatever it was I was reaching for.  How sad, he couldn't have been more than 6 months old yet he already knew how to beg. He probably begs more than he plays (or maybe he was the ringleader in disguise, maybe as I walked away he stoked up a cigar and bullied the women for the goods to divvy up as he saw fit).

I gave them everything I had, about 20 pesos.  As I had became more aware of what was happening, I smiled and walked away.  In hindsight, I wish I would have had the with-it-ness to act like I was going to help in some big way and walked them to the DSWD office, which was about 50 yards down the street.  What a great learning experience.  I'll definitely be more prepared next time.

Hey, update on the tree boys.  Their beds are still up there and they haven't been around now for about 4-5 days.  They must have a time share in other barangays (bar-ang-guy-s)