I've Only Just Begun

I’ve Only Just Begun

When I leave for the Philippines, I will bring back sweet and comforting thoughts of Australia. This country has been my home for the last five months or so, and it certainly has been mission fulfilled for me.

I must admit that when I got admitted to my scholarship at the University of Sydney, I was so sad just thinking of the length of time that I will be away from home. I may have travelled a lot before, but this was the longest time that I would be away from home, and it made me so sad and homesick even before I got on the plane to come here.

However, this sadness and this homesickness that I imagined  never happened when I came here - becauseI I was overwhelmed with so much warm welcomes from friends, relatives and people both from my here and my country. THEY have all made my stay here hospitable and comfortable beyond imagination. I was surrounded by relatives, and friends who shared their joys and laughter, their food and their red wine. I met new friends. I met a wonderful new family in the persons of Janice and Frank Gedra who gave me a home and treated me like their own daughter, to which I am forever grateful. I reconnected with family, and spent rewarding time catching up with them - time which would connect open circles in my life's journey. 

I am sure I will miss Australia - the place and the people I've connected with. When I go to my second semester in Sri Lanka, it might not be as relaxing, consoling and encouraging as being here. I will miss the almost weekly Filipino food at the church, at Granville, and at various different homes. I was never hungry here – both for physical food, spiritual food and emotional food. I will miss the overflowing redwine. I cannot also forget the experience of working as a house cleaner or a nanny at some points during my stay here and was able to gain first hand impressions of the thousands who toil in these kind of works. The experience has given me a deeper understanding of life abroad and how hard it is to survive just to earn some money either to send to our family, or to save for a better life in the Philippines.

My Master’s program has exposed me to new ideas that I can apply to my work as a lawyer and a human rights activist and to my everyday experience as a woman and an indigenous person. I will always go back to the Philippines to be a lawyer for the people, and, to the best that I can, to help the marginalized sectors of our society.

Life back home is not all that rosy. Well, not much has changed. Politicians remain the same – the same surnames run the country. From the President down to the barangay. Life, as it was 20 years ago, is not much different from today. More and more people roam the city streets in hunger and violence. Less and less people are able to gain employments. More professionals end up as call center agents. These, among so many reasons, are what drive many of us to choose the very difficult decision to leave our homeland for abroad, in our hopes for better lives because there seems to be no hope back home.

Those who had to bear a life away from loved ones remain the icons of hope, the beacons of inspiration, that one day all will be well in the Philippines. Your struggles in Australia reflect wondrous benefits for those whom you have asked to stay behind at home. The ukay-ukay, the remittances, the capital for both house and business, the alternative life of migration – these link Australia to the Philippines, and back.               

 

In this difficult world that we live in, let us continue to celebrate life, celebrate our culture. I thank you all for sharing your time and resources with me during these past five months. I would not have gone this far, with so many beautiful memories of Australia, without your companionship and generosity. I hope I too was able to impart some lessons in life to you, especially those whom I spent some time with. This is not goodbye, but, ‘til we meet again.

We’ve only just begun –

Before the risin' sun, we fly

So many roads to choose

We'll start out walkin' and learn to run

And yes, we've just begun 

And when the evening comes, we smile

So much of life ahead

We'll find a place where there's room to grow

And yes, we've just begun

(Mannja, Sydney, Australia, Dec. 2012)