A Sad Change

The Second World War was a turning in our family – in a bad way and good. Bad, because we were always on the run and we had to start from scratch all over again. But good, because it brought our family much closer.

As we were going from one place to another, we children learned how to survive in difficult times. My brother Eddie and I would gather seashells, which our mother would make into delicious hot soup for our meals. Many times, all we had to eat was boiled “kamoteng kahoy” (cassava).

In those perilous times, we were reassured by the presence of our parents in our midst. The experience we had during the war prepared us for life afterwards. Coming back to the city after the war, we found a small house along Bonifacio Street, where Mama Pining opened a small sari-sari store. It also doubled as our living quarters.

Our mother was a very industrious woman. She would go around for things to sell at her store. Yet no matter how busy she was, Mama Pining never forgot her motherly duties with us children, teaching us to help out in the house chores and in the store.

Papa Inting, for his part, would always check on us kids upon coming home from his short trips to the nearby towns, where he had either planned or started to put up schools.  At night after dinner, he would sometimes tell us stories about his trips, but most of the time he was more interested to know how our day went while he was away.

There was never a time that we children questioned our parents’ instruction. We trusted them so much – that they only wanted what was good for us. We loved them, even if at times we’d get a handful of disciplining from them.

I am personally saddened to see many young people today ignoring the counsel of their parents, defying their parents’ wishes. True, parents also have their mistakes along their parental styles; they are just humans too. But even their mistakes are made in the name of love for their children.  

I have observed that today’s families are loosening in their relationship. Family members no longer communicate their care and love for one another. They have lesser time to be together.

Rare are the times these days when the whole family would gather together at meal. In the morning, everybody is rushing out of the house. The kids have to go to school; the parents have to go to work. No one would come home for lunch; it’s impractical considering the traffic situation in the city.

Supper is the only meal that the whole family can share without having to hurry. It’s the only time they may communicate with one another. But with modern gadgets in their hands, family members seldom talk.

Everybody now seems too busy, even at home. This is very sad. Parents bring their work concerns home. And children are forgetting about the formula: Papa + Mama + I Love You = Family.