Experience – BINHI output

My Life

There are many things that build “Jenica”: Country, Family, School life, Religion. These are not completely unique to me, but the specific experiences are the ones that make up the girl I am today.

For 12 years, I had lived in Singapore with my family and usually only visited the Philippines for a vacation and to spend time with relatives. I grew up to be a respectable, quiet girl. Eventually, we returned to the Philippines and I continued my studies in high school. In a way, I was able to experience both the foreign culture and local cultures.

Currently, I live out my life in a middle-class family as a student of the Ateneo. My father still works in Singapore as an OFW, and in his stead, my aunts take care of me. I am quite average in my academics, but I strive hard to develop myself in many aspects such as volunteer work for big events. I have been quite blessed with my upbringing and I really consider myself lucky, given so many opportunities. As such, Ateneo provided students with a new kind of chance through BINHI to get a glimpse into a different kind of life.

BINHI Experience

In my BINHI, we were able to enjoy time with a host family in GK Central. Me and Isaac, my partner, were under the care of Ma’am Emma as well as another group where we spent most of our time in. To help out, us students volunteered to chop the vegetables for the pancit canton cooked for everyone. It didn’t take long, and for the rest of my stay I was able to witness and join in on how the mothers would interact with each other, with us students, and with their children.

Despite being in the place for the first time, the atmosphere was something familiar. It very much reminded me of the times I would visit my relatives when I was younger. Their houses had the same feel as my relatives’ homes. When put it in another way, it was like of my own home with my two young cousins running about the house, my Titas scolding them, and later turning to me to talk about something.

There’s no denying that there would moments of awkward silence because we didn’t know where to start. The differences in our lifestyles were there, especially since we were students coming from one of the top schools of the Philippines while the BINHI location was just a humble abode. But through pakikiramdaman, conversations would start and carry on.

Through our interactions, I learned that Ma’am Emma’s husband works overseas as a baker. Furthermore, both me and another host mother come from the same religion (Iglesia Ni Cristo), so we were able to share some of our roles within it. Despite coming from different backgrounds, we had some overlapping traits. Other students were also able to share their own experiences and garner everyone’s attention. Aside from the kwentuhan, one of the members of the other group got to spend most of her time with one of the children and play with her.

Although our habitus are different, it is not an indication that we will not be able to make good company. Many of us were able to interact well during BINHI and I think given more time, we would be able to get along more. There are shared experiences which are important, as they are where the kwentuhan starts.