Philanthropy in the mountains

my dad went home to the Philippines recently and just came back this weekend. i have not seen him this happy in a long time. he got to do all the things he's dreamed of doing.

a funny thing happens to Filipinos when they go back home, no matter what kind of life they might live here, no matter how hard it may be, they spend richly and live like they've never had to break a sweat. it has a lot to do with being just happy to be away from the reality of life and living the fantasy that every man, woman and child in Philippines has about "going to America!" and coming home to your friends to prove that it's as good as everyone thinks it is.

it's especially prevalent in the older generation, to be a "balikbayan" (literal meaning: returning to country) is to save up and spend it home.

in any case, a true sign of times and the spread of philanthropy has finally reached even a small village in Ilocos Norte, where my dad is from. He went home for a mini-reunion in Pagudpud for their annual fiesta. the mayor, knowing that a contingent of balikbayans would be returning for this fiesta, prepared an invite-only dinner at his home. my dad received an invitation, so did his cousin from San Francisco. it's an honor to dine at the mayor's home especially when it's a lavish dinner with a select group of people. of course, my dad went. they had a lovely dinner, the mayor discussed his plans for the village and told them that they all were considered VIPs for the weekend-long fiesta.

during coffee and dessert, the mayor told them about the fiesta contests and the cash prizes involved. he then asked each of them to sponsor one of the contests and provide the cash prize. pretty smooth ask, no? my dad, feeling particularly philanthropic, gave his sponsorship then and there. In Philippine money, it equated to about $300 but went a long way for the winner.

i never saw my dad as a philanthropist until now but i'm pretty impressed that the mayor of a small town can get him to think along those lines. i can finally explain to him what i do for a living.