Alms for the boaters?

On tour with family for a couple of weeks to the Visayas, central islands of Philippines.

Fishermen in small boats called “bancas” from the island of Cebu gather alongside the docking SuperFerry (a primary means of inter-Island transport) to dive for peso coins thrown to them by passengers aboard deck 3 of the larger vessel. It is common to bring along a small child (often naked and not necessarily your own) to elicit sympathy from the passengers.

Despite the crass circus sideshow aspect of this display, the daring and talent of these people is nothing short of amazing.

Eat your greens

Fresh fruit is plentiful in season, but despite the tropical environs, fresh vegetables are often hard to come by.

Below, a young boy wades into the greasy-gray waters of Marikina River to gather kangkong for the family meal.  Kangkong is a spinich-like vegetable used in several Filipino dishes that, depending upon where it is harvests offers an excellent source of vitamin C, iron and by times an assortment of heavy metals.

Can you dig it?

Had the chance to join writer Mike Gingrich on assignment for Jeepney magazine… a fledgling street mag geared to help the urban poor get a leg up on life. The Pinoy term Mangangalakal can mean entrepreneur, but in the relocated squatter community of Tansa 1, it refers to individuals with a salvage lisence for the new landfill. Part of a story on the 10-worst jobs in Manila, in actual fact, the night shift pictured here much prefered self-employment and the ability to be home with family on a daily basis to the subsistance wages found in the city core.

Shalom Bahay Paanakin: birthing clinic

Honored as Member of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth; 75 year-old, Mavis Orton remains a force to be reckoned with. The no-nonsense midwife of Action International’s Shalom birthing clinic in Antipolo, Philippines, rules the clinic with a unique blend of warmth and authority. She has to. On any given month, the clinic she founded in the early 1990’s is helping over 125 mothers give birth.

Presently operating out of a 2-room clinic within her home (note recovery cot on floor, bottom right), Mavis Orton has, with the help of Action International, purchased land adjacent to her property for a proposed state-of-the-art midwifery clinic.

For more information or to get involved, contact Action International via their website: HERE.

Bahala na

In Tagalog, the primary language of the Philippines, there is a phrase that is thought to capture the easy going way of life among Filipinos here… bahala na. Loosely translated, it means “Let it go”. Yet, it is also the name of a gang of hardcore street kids with a “Lord of the Flies” fraternity.

Risking the unknowns of life on the street over the known dangers of staying at home, kids of the urban poor, aged 9-19, live in packs run by a well established pecking order. Left to fend for themselves, these gangs spend their waking hours scrounging for food and kicks, the latter coming from a cheap high experienced by sniffing an adhesive solvent called Rugby.

ACTION International Ministries are reaching out to these kids with help from various church groups, Department of Social Welfare, police and mobile health teams to restore spiritual purpose and physical wellbeing to any who show both the need and willingness to change their lives for the better.

Manila by Night

Click to view a panoramic night-view of metro-Manila from the campus of Faith Academy in Antipolo, Philippines.

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Papa John’s Orphange

Though trained as a dentist, Gemma Bapuyh in her mid-30’s is not focusing on her income as much as she is her output. She now pours her energy into the care of 15 children living in her family’s home. The project, partially supported by Action International, is called Papa John’s Orphanage. With no official budget or regular support stream, Papa John’s is a veritable 1st-Century mission literally praying in the groceries while offering the Father’s love to the fatherless. The children’s testimonies there are nothing short of miraculous.

Miracle #1:

Maricris came from a squatter town on the dumps of Payatas in metro-Manila. Abandoned by her mother, she was left with an abusive father who was later jailed for drug-related charges. Ill-equipped, her 15 and 16 year old sisters left her at the age of six to scavenge for her existence. Poorly clothed and suffering from extreme malnutrition, the young girl was identified by Gemma during a feeding/outreach program.

After negotiating with the older sisters and the Department of Social Welfare, Gemma brought the child to Papa John’s for care and education. Now a happy and healthy little girl, Maricris can now read, write and is entering 3rd grade this year.

Miracle #2:

Jay Jay, estimated to be now 7 years old, was found abandoned at Manila International Airport in 2005 and brought to Papa John’s orphanage for care. Attempts to locate the boy’s parents were unsuccessful, yet the smiles of this now cheerful young one speaks volumes.

Miracle #3:

Danica (left) and Danna (right), eight year-old twins were dropped off at a center by the father of an estranged pair of street parents. Hearing about these abandoned children and unwilling to do nothing, Gemma eagerly took them in and began to minister care. The story is not over for these two, but it has definitely turned a brand new page.

Urban Tribe

First week in Philippines is behind us know. Have jumped the jetlag and have spent the past 3 days helping at several feeding programs for the urban poor… a real mind-twister at some level, but in truth: it just seems like the right thing to do – normal.

So far have visited two squatters villages and, today met with rescued street kids and then visited the neighborhood where many came from and hung out with kids there. Puts a new layer onto our understanding of earthy…

On one hand, folks are so needy here, but on the other hand they’ve got this indominable spirit, a tribal loyalty, that is nothing short of inspiring. Our own tribe is growing leaps and bounds through it all 2B sure.

Tomorrow visiting an orphanage… all part of the holistic effort of our hosts Action International to feed body, mind and soul of street kids here.

Film at 11.

Magnum PI (philippine islands)

After 20+ hours in transit with Lib, the 5 kids, 14 pieces of checked luggage, plus hand-carry; we arrived in the Manila with all our luggage in tact (and eyebags to boot). Cathay-Pacific did an amazing job ferrying us from Vancouver, up the Alaskan panhandle, across the Berring Straight, and over white-wonderous Siberian wastelands, to Hong Kong and on to the land of Lib’s birth, the Philippines.

The last time I was in the Philippines was 1995… so many changes! In the past 13 years, the population of my family has grown by 40% (from 5 to 7). Amazingly enough, the people of the Philippine Islands have followed suite, swelling from 73 million peoples in 1995 to an estimated 91 million today!

Like last visit, we’re hoping to reconnect with family and enjoy the experience of discovering new things in lands otherwise unfamiliar to us; but there is much more involved this time around… stay tuned.

Death to dust bunnies

Is it a bird? A plane? No, it’s a dust bunny! In fact a flyin’ burrow of them. You’re looking at 1500 identical pixels from the CMOS chip of a Canon 5D dSLR – cropped from two separate images of a blank piece of paper. On the left is the crud-studded photo sensor prior to cleaning. On the right (taken 10 minutes later) is the same section of chip real estate after 3 blasts of dry air from a blower bulb and a few careful swipes with the statically charged bristles of a 728 Arctic Butterfly brush made by VisibleDust.

Best $100 I’ve spent yet.