I woke up this morning feeling some agitation about school enrollment. It dawned on me that I have hesitantly become responsible for the payment of college tuition fees of a nephew and a niece, plus plus plus. I wasn’t prepared to take on those big responsibilities considering that university tuition fees are full of zeroes. 70,000 38,000, thousand thousand plus my son’s 180,000. I also get several love letters from drivers asking for huge cash advances to pay for tuition. It’s so stressful. Sometimes I wonder if they realize how much they are wanting to borrow, and how they intend to pay back. Maybe, they have no intention to pay me back to begin with.
About three years ago, a kababayan kept on texting me borrowing some money for his daughter’s nursing tuition fee. He said he’s waiting for his SSS loan which should come in two weeks, however, the money is needed immediately because it’s already the deadline. After I gave him the money, he disappeared and never texted me back. I tried to contact him several times after two weeks reminding him to return my money. He never replied.
One of my parents’ former house helpers sent me a piece of paper which I almost threw away because I thought it was not meant for me, what it was for and I did not recognize the name printed on the paper. Apparently, it was her son’s tuition fee computation, all P12,500 for one sem. It was only after a week that I realized what it was all about. I sent half of the amount, and to this day, I never heard anything from them. It was like they vanished into oblivion.
Someone contacts me 3 x a year, to borrow money for her son’s high school tuition in La Salle. I have never lent her money because when I was growing up in Binangonan, their family paraded like rich people. so I thought why would I be responsible for her son’s education? I don’t want to sound rude, but okay na nga rude na ako, but if she can’t afford to send him to La Salle, he can very well study in Binangonan Rizal.
Those are just some of my experiences.
I am sure most of us experience this kind of stress at this time of the year. I remember when it’s enrollment time, some neighbors wait for my parents in our sala, hoping to get some money for their children’s college, high school, elementary tuition. People who were supposed to be more affluent, and yet, they also experienced some financial difficulties in sending their children to school. My parents weren’t rich. I would not even use the word affluent, just middle class. But my father was a boyscout, lagi syang handa. I am pretty sure he and my mother also stressed out when it’s enrollment time, especially when the going gets really tough. But lucky for me, Aileen and my kuyas, our parents did not go to neighbors’ houses to help them sustain our education. We were able to go through college with no utang, puro tipid lang ang mama at papa ko.
Kaya when my father found out that my Kuya Ben was nagbubulakbol, Naluha ang papa ko sa sama ng loob. Pag-uwi ng Kuya Ben nung gabing iyon, itinali ang paa nya sa kama at nasinturon pa sya. Awang-awa ako sa Kuya nun, kumuha ako ng pagkain sa kusina at ibinigay ko sa kuya nung hindi naka tingin ang papa at baka pati ako eh masinturon, ang nipis pa naman ng pwit ko. I was probably 10 years old, Kuya Ben, 20.
Kaya kayong mga bata, huwag sayangin ang perang ibinayad sa school nyo at hindi nyo alam malamang na inutang lang ng magulang nyo yung pera para mapag-aral kayo.
