Abdula Pasion

Abdulah, brother to Hammid, lives “along the rail” in Santa Cruz, in a home woven of coconut leaves and dried coconut lumber. When asked where they slept, they responded, “Where you are standing, sir,”—on a red carpet. One match and our home would go up in flames. We have lived here for the last 12 years. Our roof used to be made of nipa, but now it is galvanized sheet metal.

We are really poor. The food we eat is low quality and sometimes only twice a day.

The number one reason we are poor is that we are too many. We have a very large family, who all live together, and we have no permanent job. There are seven of us children, our parents and five nieces. Our eldest sibling died from a motorcycle accident; he was with his friend and was drunk. He had three children, so we take care of them, too.

I work 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. driving a pedicab within our block. The most I can earn in a day is Php200. My average earnings in a day is Php80.

I had a football scholarship in Pedro Guevara High School. My coach helped with my transportation money so I could afford to go. I was invited to play with Rizal Technological University (RTU), but I stopped because the money from RTU, Php500 a month, was not enough to sustain my studies. For my studies I needed Php700 a week to cover books and drafting plates and pens for my engineering course. I

tried to get a job in a motel to supplement my studies, but I could not get regular work.

Later I was able to get a one-year scholarship at Laguna State Polytechnic University in their automotive program. I still hope to finish the second year of that two-year course.