My friend Lilibeth

My friend Lilibeth work next door neighbour. It like hotel place people coming and go. She is like how you say manager. She know how use computer and she teach me also. She very clever. Her husband also live there he drive car. Lilibeth also know how to drive. She look after plants and house. She gives me lots of flower plant and I bring them to my maam to make her happy. My maam she look at them and she say Sally you look after them I have a black thumb. What is this black thumb black thumb? her thumbs very normal I do not understand her black thumb.

So I bring flowers home and I tell maam I want go buy medicine to make plant grow. She say ok Sally do you know where should we go to buy it? I tell her Carfour because I like go to mall. My maam she never take me anywhere. One time I tell her Maam I feel like vomit in the car. From then time she never take me in car only if she have to she take me. What to do there are so many round round and so many up down. One time at before house only one time I vomit little in car. I tell maam only one time but now she not take me. Children she will take to movie or mall but I have to stay home. Sally we are just coming she say but then she does not come for 3 or 4 hours. What to do sometime I get so bored but when she going I can sit on computer. They have 4 computer. One for Sara one is maam one is sir and one is a big computer which Rayan uses. He 5 year old and has computer. Maam say that not his computer that it is whole family computer. I thinking even I part of family so I can use this computer when maam goes out and just coming back.

Lilibeth very clever. She tell me all kinds of clever things. One day she say Sally why you not go to Satwa and buy phone cards and sell, you can buy a card for 21 dirham and sell for 25 dirham. I get so excited I will go tell my maam. My maam she no like it. She tell me Sally how many cards will you buy? I tell her 10. So she say Sally you will spend more money going to Satwa and coming back and then who will you sell the cards to? Then she tell me it not legal to sell cards like this. I understand. she no want me to make extra money and do my own buziness. Suppose I get successful then I can leave her. I understand how my maam is thinking. So I give up idea. I then also thinking who will buy my cards? I am little shy I cannot go to anyone in park and say buy my cards. maybe my maam is right. But I still no like that maam say no do business.

One time my maam and sir and children go one whole month and Lilibeth show me how to use computer. Also internet. Lilibeth say I very quick learn she show me email and blog I learn how to use everything now everytime they go out I quickly finish work and I go on computer. She show me how use google. I look at pictures of my home Davao and I feel homesick.

When I tell maam I feel homesick she say even she sometime feel homesick. But it different my homesick her homesick. She have family here I only have few friend like Lilibeth. I tell her at before place if I feel homesick my maam take me for movie or mall then I feel better. But this maam no understand she no take me for movie or mall she worry I vomit in car. I even tell her sometime housemaid get depress if they getting homesick but she not say anything. Then because I upset she not listen me I bang thing in kitchen and she go sit on computer. Computer computer all time I not knowing what she do.

Lilibeth husband drive a car so sometime he give me a carlift to spinny or choitram. Like when my maam family go to vacashin before they come home I tell her maam I go choitram by taxi and get bread and milk before you come. you can pay me taxi money. Then I go with Lilibeth husband to choitram and give him 5 dirham and tell maam I pay 20 dirham for taxi. That way I do my own business no need for phone cards.

My life in Davao

I grow up in Davao in Philippines. Davao very beautiful place not like Manila. I wish I can show picture but I not know how to do that. When I small we are my mama and daddy and two brother and two sister. One day when I is 15 year old my daddy he leave us. We have no money. I tell my daddy give money but he have new lady now. My brother they hate my daddy but I still love him even if he not live with us. I am oldest so I want look after my brothers and sisters. My mama she not want me leave school but no choice. She send me to her friend house to work as housemaid. My mama she work in store but she feel very tired all the time she no like to work. She making me go to Manila after one years to work in factory. But I no like it so I come back to Davao.

When I am 17 I meet Richie. He really nice to me. I think I love him. I get pregnate. I feel so bad to tell my mama and my daddy but I have no choice. My daddy he very sad he have hope for my career. I also very sad I want do something for myself and my career. I want leave my child with mama but my mama very tired she say no you cannot leave child with me I want getting marry again who will marry me with so small child. So then I leave child with Richie. He nice man but I no want to marry him because drinking a lot. But I have no choice to leave my son with him. I feel sad but what to do if I want career I have to leave him. I leave him with Richie when he only 2 month. I have no choice if I have to work. I no see my child for 4 or 5 year because if I see him I feel sad and missing him.

One day I hear Filipina maid get good job oversea. I think I go work in Hong Kong Dubai Kuwait Muscat Oman. Very good pay. I contacting agency and making passport. Soon I am leaving for Oman.

In Philippine all the men no like to work. My brother they also very lazy. I send them money they use for drinking. My mama say send money for buy motorbike for brother. I send money and my brothers use motorbike whole day to take friends here there drinking. So my mama sell motorbike and use money for her own. Then I tell mother to buy pig and make them fat and sell fat pig for money. I send her money to buy pig. But when I ask her for money she say pig die. I think she sell pig and give money to new husband. He is not good man he not looking after my brothers and sisters. I have to send money for them from here. My mama have my two other child with this man and I send money all of them. Now we are 3 brother 3 sister.

But my sister Lilian she running away. One day she go and no come back. I think she have boyfriend. I in Oman that time. My mama call me on mobile tell me she not come back. My brother see Lilian boyfriend with small baby one day. He want to beat boyfriend but what use I tell him. Where is Lilian we do not know. Why she hide baby from us maybe she feel bad. But we no know if baby hers or other person. We think hers. He look just like Lili.

My daddy he die heart attak when I work in Oman. I very sad even if he not live with us and he have other lady I still love him. I cry lot when I am in my job. My brother they no cry. One day my mama phone me tell me she have operation send money. I get very scare she is going to die also. I send her money. She tie up baby part that give her baby. She say she very tire. in pain all time. I feel sad. she tell me send more money for her make well. I send lot of money home for my mama and my brother and sister.

I go back to Philippine after 2 year in Oman. I meet Richie and my son. He nearly 7 year old but he know me. Richie tell him all about me. Richie good man but I no marry him because he drink and smoke lots. But I happy Richie tell my son your mama name is Sally she work in Oman. When I tell my maam that I no marry Richie because he not responsible she say But you leave your child with him? How to tell her I no have any choice. She not understanding how my life is.

When I go back Philippine I think I stay there but then I want come back to career. So I contact agency and come back Dubai this time. I work for 2 day in one home too big too much work children crying crying all time. So I tell that maam take me back agency. Then I find other new family. My before sir in Dubai family. They very nice that maam take me to mall and movie lots of time but I have watch children lot. Lot late night party also. No family perfect I know that so I stay. I work for them one year then they moving so they transfer my visa to friend. That how I come to this maam.

Me and my maam

I so jealous of her. She have all nice things and me I have small room small bathroom. She have so many room so many bathroom. When she go out I use her thing her bathroom also.  I no like her sometimes. But she my maam so I have be nice to her. I have to do thing she tell me to do even when I not want.

Like two day ago I am cleaning kitchen. It 7.30 at night. My sir and maam and two children eat dinner early so I go to bed 9 oclock. It was not like that at place I work before. There they would eat dinner at 10 and I sleep 12 midnight. And get up next morning at 5 to pack school lunch. So I cleaning kitchen and maam she tell me Children will have banana pancakes tomorrow morning. Just like that. At 7 in evening. So I have to make them at night because how I can make them in the morning so quickly before they leave for school at 7.30? How she tell me at 7 to start make pancakes. When I work at the other place before I use to make 25 dishes for iftar in fasting period but I start making them early before I take the 4 children to the park but now I have to make pancake in middle of night at 7.

I very angry but what I can do I had to do pancake. So I make lot of noise when I cleaning up bang dishes and doors. My maam she not care she just go upstair and sit on computer. In morning I wake up 5.45 this famly better about these timing than  before other family and I wake up and make lots of noise again so my maam would be disturb. But she not say anything to me when she come down so I no think she hear me upstair. So next time I angry I make more noise again.

Yesterday while I wash windows my slipper broke so maam gave me her slipper. I take them even though she haves a big foot and my foot little smaller. She say Do they fit? You can have them. They were little big but I take them because they nice. Now my feet hurt. Why she give me big slippers? Why she not give me smaller ones? I tell her Maam your slippers make my feet hurt. She say Because they are big I think. But what I can do the slippers are really nice. Maybe she gave me because her feet hurt in them. But she used to wear them and no complaining they hurt. Maybe her feet are big so they no hurt her. 

My friend Lilibeth she work next door say if you have big feet your balance better so they no hurt. Lilibeth very clever. She tell me lot of important things. Like she tell me not to have bath in evening because if you do then you get what you say paralize. Really. So now I wake up 5.45 early morning to take shower before children coming down for breakfast. Maam wake up at 6 and then she looks at children lunchbox to see if I put everything in it proper. She say Sara like tuna Rayan like chicken make sure you have give right sandwich. As though I would put wrong sandwich in wrong box. Maybe once I put wrong snack in wrong bag and Rayan get full strawberry instead of cut strawberry. Maam tell me with smile Rayan only 5 years old Sally he need strawberry chop.

Maam think very important this kind of thing. I think atleast he getting strawberry. My brothers and sisters in Philippine they no get anything. These children of my maam and sir are so lucky they have so many toys and thing I so jealous of them