SUMMARY
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LONDON, United Kingdom – No matter how discretely I would like to label myself, I am now an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW).
This is indeed a milestone for me and so I decided to make a diary of my journey in England. Some of these things may entice you to work overseas. Some may not. Just bear with me.
The automatic currency converter
Filipinos are truly gifted with mathematical abilities. You’ll be able to discern this once you visit a foreign country. When I faced the prices of the groceries in Sainsbury’s, my mental calculator started working. How much is 68 pesos multiplied by 2.17 pounds? So that is 7 times 8, carry 1, plus 2… and voila, 147.56 pesos suddenly popped out of my head.
Genius isn’t it? But every time I got the peso price, I would end up bringing the product back to its shelf, thinking that it was overpriced.
The language barrier
The British tell us that our English is good, but what they don’t know is that we have been exhausting our tongues, jaws and nerves in deciphering their messages.
An hour or two of conversation can drain our energy. Besides the British accent, British terms are difficult to navigate. Jab for vaccine, cupboard for a cabinet. The list goes on.
The funny thing is that when we Filipinos try talk with each other using the British accent, the more we misunderstand each other.
The acclimatization
“Britain’s hottest summer in 7 years,” the morning newspaper reads.
How can 14 degrees celsius be hot weather for any Filipino? This can’t seriously be their summer. This is probably a winter temperature for a Filipino.
When I was asking for advice regarding the clothes that I should put in my baggage prior to the flight, my friends suggested that I should bring summer clothes. So I hoarded some shorts, chiffon tops and slippers, not knowing that summer for them is defined as a temperature more than 10 C.
So there I was: a poor, shivering fellow in Tadworth.
The Filipino home
Ending your day with a bunch of Filipinos to talk to is nirvana. Finally, I can free my chained tongue and be able to speak to my fellow Filipinos using my native language.
Although most of us are technically strangers to each other, knowing that we are of the same culture is my own security blanket. I usually go out of my room when the clock strikes 9 pm, as this is the time when most of my Filipinos housemates come home. Jokes and laughter fill the kitchen, all lights begin to open on the 2nd floor, doors start banging, and the nurse’s home turns into a happy and loud community.
Though we’re often reprimanded for our noise and for our use of the Filipino language, this does not stop us from expressing our Filipino culture.
Nostalgia is not an overstatement for an OFW. I truly miss the comfort of living in the Philippines. I miss my friends and my family.
There are days when all of these things get to my nerves and swallow me. But when I think of how my little patients here long for a nurse’s cuddle, the pain diminishes. At an early age, they’re deprived of a family’s love. A sick, 2-year-old little girl needs more hugs than a 24-year-old woman away from home.
One day at a time. I believe that each day brings me closer to God’s purpose for this journey. – Rappler.com
Ria Brillante used to work as a pediatric oncology nurse at Philippine Children’s Medical Center. She moved to London last August 2013 to work with the kids at The Children’s Trust.
#BalikBayan is a project that aims to harness and engage Filipinos all over the world to collectively rediscover and redefine Filipino identity.
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