my small world: true colors

Most informal settlers in Metro Manila are located in visible areas. Some may see them as eyesores but I think they’re just showing this city’s true colors. Unlike most of these areas which are very noticeable, my close encounter was in a lesser known part of Makati….It is carefully hidden behind a row of big houses and a concrete wall, a few blocks from where I temporarily reside. You won’t see it at first glance. More than a hundred houses occupy a very small strip of land. The average house is less than nine square meters. To maximize the space, some families built second and third levels. All of the houses are made of makeshift materials. Some walls are just made of flattened boxes.

Reach Youth Ministry allowed us to join them in their weekly rounds in this area. Ate Fe is the one in charge of the area. Almost all the kids know Ate Fe. She has been working with Reach Youth for several years. And I’m amazed by how comfortable the kids were with her.

Ate Fe gathers the kids twice a week for feeding both spiritually and physically. So one Saturday in January, we went house to house to invite the kids. We walked along the very dark narrow corridor which serves as the walkway for these houses. The corridor was so narrow that we had to stop when someone is coming from the other way. What made the walk more complicated, is that some residents were washing their clothes along the walkway.

The experience had quite an impact on me and it’s not because I have been sheltered and have only seen these harsh realities for the first time. . I’m aware of the poverty in our country. Aware..is an understatement. My parents are public school teachers and we were six in the family. So I know how it is not to have enough. We live in a community where most cannot afford to eat three square meals a day. Before I made this into a sob story, let me get back to my story.

The experience with Ate Fe had an impact on me. It makes me appreciate the little things…. I have taken for granted. I’ve just been detached for quite some time since I haven't been home for quite a while. As my boss would say although in a different context, sitting atop out ivory towers, we tend to forget how it is out there. But my experience with Reach Youth allowed me to re-acquaint myself with the world I know. And I’m thankful for such experience. But I hope the impact won’t be just short-lived and I would be able to do something about it.

Below are the kids, we shared food and stories with…….