Love in the Time of Migration
By Randy David
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Philippine Daily Inquirer
The article Love
in the Time of Migration was based on a thesis entitled Lives on Hold: Sons of Migrant Parents by Sir Arnold P. Alamon. As
stated in the article, typical Filipino parents are supposed to be supportive
of one another in the performance of their culturally-prescribed roles as
provider and home maker, respectively. To show their support in education, to
provide to the needs of their children and to see their children grow and have
their own family. But these traditional orders were strongly disturbed because
of the realization of overseas work. The sons and daughters of the overseas
workers tend to forget the feeling of being loved and cared physically by their
own providers. Many ways were made just to bridge the distance. But at certain
point it still lacked the spirit of family life. But there are also good
effects of having overseas parents. In the study of Sir Alamon, his respondents
all became college graduates and they believed that living on their own made
them even stronger and motivated them to live their lives better.
Who would probably have a greater loss, the parents or
the children? Stated in the article, it would be however wrong that only the
children have suffered. The parents would probably have twice the suffering and
loss because it is a parents’ joy to see their own children grow into fine
citizens in this society but they could not endure to this feeling because they
are away from their children. In the stage of overseas working, love is showed
through continuous stream of gift giving. It has been very easy to measure the
economic benefits of overseas work. But I doubt
if one can ever quantify what the Filipino family has given up in terms of
love, or what it is doing to recover it.
GOOD
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