c
6/24/2009
The new store owner !
Not too happy, is she? P-)
Start of the new store
Getting the store ready
The new store, running͙
In just 6 days!
I am so happy. My roommate helped big time, we raised the money and
sponsored my sweetie overseas' new "Sari Sari" store. I am glad we did.
In the Philippines, the country may be poor but many a wife has her own little
enterprise. Wives are a huge help in supplementing the income of their families and
husbands by taking on various enterprises.
What is sad is that once a person reaches the mid 20's hardly anyone will hire
them for any kind of job that isn't, well, let's just say µunsavory¶. My girl used to work for
xxx until she was at an age they didn't want her around, as they do to all the ³older´ (!)
girls. After that she got a job at a curio store on the resort island nearby, but a man
assaulted her in that worst of ways and she ran away in terror all the way to Manilla to
get away from him for a while.
After that, and having a child, there were no opportunities for her, her younger
brother had to leave nursing school because his uncle in America stopped helping him
pay, and her older brother developed health issues that make it hard for him to work
and cope with everyday life, though he tries, doing electrical work and contract work
when he can get it.
While I am poor in the States, it is
like how things are for her over there.
I am very thankful to reside in a nation that is good to its disabled and unfortunate.
Sadly, where she lives only the fittest survive, as well as the fortunate to get work
elsewhere. Many a Pinoy works on a ship deep sea fishing in Alaska, or on a freighter
running through the zone where those pirates terrorize the sea lanes.
Some Filipinos work in the Arabic part of the world and are often treated worse
than animals. Part of the reason for this is the religious divide between Muslim
extremism and Catholic devotism. Many a Filipina has been raped, sentenced to death
or dismemberment for an offense they themselves never committed, but their "owners"
did commit, such as rape.
Very hard and harsh is the Filipino life.
And yet... There is so much beauty and grace in her land. So many decent hard
working honorable people in the slums, all trying to hold on to whatever amount of
dignity they can. Sadly, some girls exploit men overseas, or marry just to get out of the
country and situation, marrying to men that are incapable of maintaining a real
relationship with a woman of their own nation. It is very sad.
I met my darling because I took a vacation there and I was her family's guest.
They showed me around and treated me like royalty, and she charmed my sox off.
@ever in my life have I seen a more radiant, genuine smile then the one of my
sweetheart. There aren't words to describe my love for her and my admiration of her.
Well, this last week she proved herself in a very powerful way. My roommate
and I got some money and, when the roommate listened in to one of my conversations
with her (our doors are like paper and he is, uh, curious, shall we say). She was talking
with me about our dream of her having a little "Sari Sari Store". He came in and
commented that he thought we should find a way for her to have one, to my surprise.
What is a Sari Sari Store, you ask. Uh, think of the term sari sari as meaning
"something - something". They are tiny neighborhood "stores", residing in a Filipino
version of an enclosed Kiosk, that sell small or tiny or individual quantities of various
necessities and minor pleasures such as candy.
You see, the average Filipino doesn't have the wherewithal to buy a case, not
even a pack, of something such as cigarettes. Instead, they buy an individual item,
small/tiny bottle, cup of sugar, and so on. So, she has opened a store, a very tiny thing,
that supplies people with these needs and desires. She sells single Coca Cola bottles,
individual packages of @escafe and Sugar, a portion of rice, a Cigarette, a piece of
candy, a little bottle of shampoo, a small bar of laundry soap.
But what has me so proud is that it took her only 4 or 5 days (!) to build and
ready her store, and on day 6 she was selling. She stayed open very late, that first few
nights until 2 AM, the night before 3 AM. Her first day's sales were 500 Pesos. The
next night's closing saw 700 pesos and last night's count totaled 1,000 pesos. Sure,
right now the exchange rate is about 45 pesos to the dollar, but for someone there that
is a LOT of money, especially to start out with. Where she holding a job at minimum
wage she'd be getting something like a couple pesos an hour or so. They only earn
about 3 or 4 dollars a 12 hour day (a A hour day! O and yesterday she earned a profit of
1,000 pesos, or, rather, $21.73 US.
This is going to really help. It gives her pride and dignity, something to do
besides feel miserable day in and day out, and her entire family chips in to help with the
store for real money. And they can dip into the store supplies, as needed, for the family.
Her older brother is even selling something they call "Muyong" (I don't know the spelling
and I might have the pronunciation wrong, I don't always hear or understand over the
long distance phone line). It is some sort of egg roll type thing that a friend prepares
and he deep fries and sells for a good profit at the store. He just started that today.
This is another person helped by starting the store.
[I had counted on helping one person, but I got 6 instead! Wall Street doesn¶t get
that kind of return. Ë
]
Right now I am walking on cloud nine. My roommate is extremely impressed
with her work and effort and industry and I feel a sense of relief for her. I don't know
how much her sales will level out at per day, but if she is able to make 1,000 a day for
30 days profit, that is $652, which will go a LO@ way in helping me care for her.
She Yahoo messaged me some photos today, and one is of her standing in her
new store looking so proud and happy and almost triumphant, and she is @OT a prideful
girl by nature, she just has respect from others now that she didn't receive before due to
the class mentality there (financial status is a bigger deal there than even here in the
good old US of A).
I am including a photo of her in front of the store so you can see how happy she
is right now. As you can see in the photo, she is positively beaming, and so am I, I am
so proud of her and of myself for having the love of such a woman as her. We've been
committed to each other for many years and one day we will be reunited!
