Another three weeks have passed in a country that I've come to love so dearly. Many of you probably don't even know that I'm here, in the Philippines again. Everything came together so quickly that it ended up being only a few days between the time I booked my ticket and came here. Many of you know that my friend Naomi is still in ministry in the Manila region. In fact it is very near to where we were before. She is just outside of Welfareville. I have been staying with her for the past weeks, as well as working on a survey in Welfareville, which will be credited towards my bachelors degree in Midwifery.
It's been so amazing to be back in this city, this country, that has in so many ways become my home. For the first hours back here I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. I was overwhelmed by the privilege of being back in this place that I love! The morning after I arrived I was awakened to the sounds of the street vendors calling out "taho, taho", a breakfast treat of tofu with syrup, as well as the jeepney's honking their horns as they drove by. The neighbors are doing construction on their house, which means that I was awakened to hammering and hollering at 6 am. All these sounds, which get quite irritating after living here for a while, were endearing that morning. I woke up thanking God for the incredible opportunity to be here again.
It's been a very good, very full 3 weeks. I feel like a lot has gone on physically as well as in my heart. I have spent a lot of days in Welfareville, collecting information for my survey. I am so blessed to be able to be there so much, talking with former patients of our clinic and seeing their "babies" that are so grown up. They are always shocked when I tell them how much I have missed Welfareville, being in Canada for the past 6 months. I don't think they begin to understand how much I love that place!
I've been taking translators from the nearby churches with me, when I collect the information for my survey. One of my translators one day was a 14-year-old. It's summer vacation right now so the youth are all available. We had just stopped for a coke break (a necessary relief from the heat!) and we were chatting. He said to me "you haven't seen the beauty of the Philippines until you've seen Welfareville." I was so blessed by his heart. That's totally the way I feel. A place that physically is anything but beautiful. But if you can see beyond the physical distractions, you see into the lives of people that are incredible. God is so good! Working in and through us all.
I've been living at Naomi's house with her, along with 5 Filipina mom's. The ministry that God has called her to in this season looks quite different than her ministry in the past and our ministry at the clinic. God has really put it on her heart to partner with the local church and facilitate them in ministry. This has taken on a few different faces, one of which is housing pregnant women that are abandoned, neglected or abused. Since I've been here there have been 5 women living in the house with us. 2 of them have given birth in the past week! We now have 5 baby girls in this house! They all come from different backgrounds. They have come out of prostitution, living on the streets, enduring abuse. It's pretty amazing to see them finding a place of shelter and strength, not only physically but also in Jesus Christ. We have been playing the Hillsongs DVD's, live worship from Hillsong's CD's. I can't help but smile when they're all walking around the house singing the song "One Way", or singing the line "circumstances fade away" from "Ever More". God really is working in their lives.
The goal now is trying to get them back on their feet. That looks different for each mom. For some it means trying to raise money to go back to their province, where the rest of their family is and they can live off the land. So many people come to Manila seeing it as a land of opportunity and promise, only to realize when they arrive that it's difficult to live here and really they were better off living off the land in their provincial area.
One of the Mom's is trying to raise money to go back to her province where her other 4 children are. She needs to pay off a debt and then raise enough money to build a Nipa hut on their land. Right now it looks like she is going to have her baby fostered for 6 months so she can work as a house helper to raise the money. She's concerned she won't be able to make enough money in the 6 months, which would be a problem because the fostering program won't keep the children for longer than 6 months.
I have proposed a plan to help these mom's raise the money they need. I went to a market today and bought beads wholesale. I went with another Mom from Welfareville who makes and sells jewellery. She showed me all the best places and best ways to buy jewellery. She is going to come here and teach these women to make some necklaces that I can take back with me to sell! The goal is to teach them business skills on a small level and help to expedite the process of them being back with their families.
This is just a part of what has been going on during the time I've been here. Living with all Filipinas has it's challenging moments, even though I've lived for years I still have a LOT to learn and understand about this culture. God gives me grace to get through one day at a time. And I still count it such a privilege to be here.
Thank you for your prayers in this time, especially prayers over our household, over the mom's that reside here, and over the lives of the amazing people I am interacting with in Welfareville. Continue to keep Carolina's family in your prayers as well!
