Since I was in my first year in college, I became aware of Gawad Kalinga’s existence because of our NSTP2 subject wherein we went to a site in Tambulilid, Ormoc City in order for us to complete the requirements of the subject. So I and my classmates were there, handling shovels, picking up stones, got dirty and sweated. At that time, when I was asked why I was there in the site, I simply answered, “For grade’s sake”. Though I know that the subject was about National Service which is helping the less fortunate building there shelters through human labor, my brain dominantly says that I did it because of the grades.
After a year, a new GK Village was built in Albuera, Leyte. As a news writer in school, our EIC assigned me to cover the activities of the NSTP students in the site. So I went there with a digital camera, a pen and a pocket notebook. Once again, the thing that came up to me was that these students were there for the completion of the subject. To get more information about the construction of the houses in the site, I interviewed Kuya Bryan and the Site Coordinator, only then have I learned that GK is not just a charity or a certain NGO that gives their money for the construction of the homes for the homeless, but it is a group of people building a community as a foundation for a better country. It is also unleashing the bayanihan spirit within the colonized hearts of the Filipinos and lifting up God’s name and glory. I felt so blessed with the conversation that I had with Kuya Bryan and the Site Coordinator because I realized how much each person had given up under the roof of each houses that they built.
In writing the article, I felt so inspired and dreams of helping and being part of the work of GK floated my mind. And to make the long story short, I jus dreamt of it and never did any action. My heart is very willing to do something but my brain just could not think of a way in doing it.
At the finals examination week in my third year, we were told that all SSG Officers and School Organization Presidents were requested to attend the GK Camp. When I heard the news, I was so excited because at last, time has found me to once again shed lots of sweat and shed sweats of love for a home for a Filipino family. My excitement rose to the highest level when I knew that we’re going to live with a foster family for the whole duration of the camp.
Before we went to St. Ambrose in Bato, Leyte where we will have our GK Camp, we stopped over on 3 GK sites in Leyte: Tinago Village in, Hilongos, Leyte. Then, in Tagbibi Village in Hindang and lastly was in the Atabay Village in ________. Each stop that we did made it clear to us that we still live with the Filipino characters running through our veins – hospitality and love of the love of food. The GK Villagers stuffed us with labtingaw (dried fish), camote (sweet potato), kinilaw and lots of Pinoy delicacies.
When we finally arrived at St. Ambrose Village, we were all surprised because we have been welcomed with a bunch of people in read shirts. Their warm welcome really touched each of our hearts. We were then assigned to our foster families after a couple of hours of rest.
In the family that I was in, I felt so welcome and the as sure as it is, their smiles filled my heart with so much joy. In the small talks that we had, it made me think how nice it would be if I’ll have a chance to have this thing in our own home. Every experience that I had in my foster family was just so remarkable. Remarkable as it is because I never expected that I would be able to learn the biggest lesson in my life that relationship-building could ever teach – to love my own family.
At first, I was thinking about the things that I wanted to picture out in my own family. I thought of how beautiful it would be if my mama could cook for me once again like my Mama Elda did for me when I was in their house. I also thought of how cute it would be if my Kuya Jun-jun way back home could fetch some water for me when the faucet runs out of it like Fred, my foster brother did and how sweet it would be if my Kuya Brian would buy halo-halo for me. These are just some of the many things that I was thinking of. But as the days passed by, the conversations that I had with Mama Elda made me realize that I’ve been demanding for something that my own family had already given me but I just did not took notice of it all because I’ve been blinded by the hatred that I felt for them because I thought they did not even care about me and the things that I want.
I realized that what only I heard in my family was the harsh tones of their voices to me, the “don’t do this and don’t do that” and “you can’t go” phrases that they always answer every time I want to do something or go somewhere, and the “you don’t have a choice” decision that they always throws up to me whenever I want to do things on my own. These were the things that made me felt over protected that eventually made me hate them – my own family.
Because of the GK Camp, particularly the immersion activity, made me think very deep that it’s me who had a problem and it’s not them whom I have a problem with. I learned that they were just trying to lead to the right path because they love me and it’s me who haven’t seen or felt that because I never tried to do so. I also learned that I have never shown them the kind of love that they’re supposed to get from a daughter and a sister. I knew it right then that I wanted so much change from them when in the first place it’s me who needed to change. I was also kind of being stricken of how pathetic it was of me to be very nice and friendly to other people and cannot even have a peaceful conversation with my own family. It was also too hypocrite of me to say “I love you” to my friends and can’t even say “take care” to my own family.
Right then, I decided to tell my parents and my brothers that I am sorry for breaking my self and hating them and tell them that I’ve come to appreciate everything that they did to me and for the first time tell them that I love them.
In the end of the day, I’ve come understand that GK is really not just building houses and communities. GK is molding clays of characters and designing it to become a better personality that will become a better citizen to the community. GK is building relationship. Relationship that spells like more than friendship. A relationship composed of love for God and unity with others that builds a strong foundation for a strong country. GK causes a person to change. A change of oneself that eventually affects change in the family that one belongs. A change in the family that affects change in the community that they are in. A change in the community that affects change in the country. And the result of this change would be a changed country. A country that loves God and each person that is living in it.
