Ups and downs

Going away for a week is good to see if everything is going as planned. The things that don't work can be addressed right away. One is simply glad about the others. Mäge's health condition is improving again, the bronchitis in the early stage averted, but the antibiotics still make him very tired - sometimes he lies down on the cot in the storage room because his eyes are closing.

Our project with Marivic was partially successful. The woman suffering from schizophrenia was accompanied to the Batulong Center twice and she was able to eat and move as she pleased there. Fortunately, she was not aggressive, maybe a little too clingy towards men. As long as there were other parents or children around, she was very insecure, but when she was alone in the center with the staff and companions, she blossomed, danced, washed dishes, and swept the leaves in the garden. We were very happy about photos and videos of these two outings. Considering that she is usually locked up or even chained, this means a lot. Unfortunately, we had to terminate the project on Monday because Cherry had lunch in the city after the check-up with Marivic. So she was no longer hungry at the Batulong Center later. We also learned that Marivic already had lunch at home, so she was no longer hungry with us. When we addressed the problem, the reason given was that they were afraid Marivic's mental condition would deteriorate if she couldn't have lunch at exactly the same time every day. They call this "pasmo," a Bisaya word that expresses problems that arise from skipping a meal. We point out that Marivic only needs to wait half an hour to an hour, but it seems to us that Marivic's parents are not cooperative and simply need an excuse. We will continue to try and have explained to the parents that our "invitation" for Marivic only applies if she also eats here (and does not already eat at home). Sometimes, helping people can be really exhausting!

We are now fully immersed in the daily Batulong life again, and we have made many home visits in the last two days. There are moments when the living and housing situations of the people who ask us for help emotionally weigh us down. On the one hand, it's the dirt, the cramped quarters, and the garbage everywhere that seems to bother no one. Sometimes there is also a lack of willingness to seek solutions in a difficult situation (except when it comes to asking Batulong for help), but there is always an excuse ready. It is striking that in many homes, a sick child is at home and not going to school: headaches, stomachaches, and fever are the usual reasons, or the student has to take care of younger siblings. We believe that admitting one or more children to Batulong can primarily change the life of the child, but partly also that of the whole family. If the parents are lazy or uninterested, at least the child has a chance to get an education and later a job through regular school attendance.

For example: the 57-year-old grandmother who takes care of her two own children as well as 3 of her grandchildren had a stroke and lost her job as a result. As far as we saw, only her left arm is paralyzed, otherwise she is not impaired. Her husband used to work with her in a factory before, and because he didn't want to work without his wife, he quit and decided to take care of his wife now. Such actions, without really considering the consequences, are frighteningly common among Filipinos! Now the man earns a little more money on weekends at cockfighting competitions - presumably, this is more fun for him... Even if we think that the poverty of the couple is self-inflicted, we still support two of the five children.

Two months ago, the house of a Batulong child's family burned down, and since then they have been living with relatives. Now they want to rebuild their hut and already have the wooden corner posts and a roof from relatives, but they still lacked the beams for the floor, on which the bamboo slats would be nailed. We asked for a calculation of the cost of the material and then rounded it up to almost double (less than 100 CHF) and added that they also needed walls... The woman was so happy! It's wonderful to be able to help someone in such a situation!

It is an exciting (and sometimes tiring) time with our new employees. We often rethink established procedures or guidelines and realize that they need to be changed. For example, Keno now has to record how much money he takes from the Batulong cash box (after inexplicably missing 500 pesos in the last cash count) or we relax the conditions for the final 12th grade, so that if they pass the USTP exam (entrance exam for a demanding college), they will also be supported in college if they did not have an average grade of 86% before.

We will stay on it...