a continuation...
The 50 year old American was a union elevator repairman, a very well paid blue collar profession. An Italian American, he lived in his childhood home in the same town he was born in, a stone's throw from the homes of both his parents and his sister. Though he wasn't forthcoming about it, he had had a failed marriage decades earlier and had a grown son older than the Filipina he now set his sights upon. While most cyber Lotharios take as long as a year or more before dropping $2,500 on a trip to the other side of the world to meet what could be a terrible nightmare, our intrepid elevator mechanic arrived in Manila a little more than two months after first messaging the young Filipina.
Meanwhile...though stunningly beautiful, the 25 year old Filipina had never even had a boyfriend. Growing up in a nipa, the bamboo framed palm leaf thatched hut that serves as the average home for rural folk here, she could barely imagine the ways in which her life was about to drastically change. Never having been more than 50km from her seaside village she was accompanied by both parents as she rode an inter-island ferry two days north to the nation's capital Manila, on the island of Luzon.
Too nervous to appreciate the sights and sounds offered by Manila the young Filipina and her parents met the middle aged American, who, at 50, was older than both of the girls' parents. After two days of talking the American proposed marriage. Giddily, innocently, neigh, ignorantly the Filipina accepted at once as her parents smiled, dreaming of the materiel improvements about to enter their lives. Unfortunatly for the newly engaged couple, it was time for the man to return to America, but he did get the ball rolling with an application for a K3 Visa, a Fiance Visa that would allow the Filipina to travel to the US where, according to their plans, they would marry in Maryland.
Away the American flew as his young Filipina fiancee began to sail for Mindanao accompanied by her beaming parents. More than a year later the now 26 year old Filipina stepped off of her flight at Dulles Airport in Washington DC and into the arms of her 51 year old husband to be. Settling into a life she had never even dared to imagine the young lady was ecstatic. From a life of hand washing her clothes in a creek and eating two meals of boiled white rice and bitter melon twice a day...and a piece of dried fish when fortunate...she suddenly found herself immersed into a life of Walmart and Target...washing machines and driers. The novelty quickly wore off though, after a month when she naively asked her fiance about assisting her family as he had pomised in Manila the year before.
After a two day running argument in which his parents and sister berated her for being materielistic and full of avarice, her fiance grudgingly agreed to pay the family's utility bills, roughly $30 every four weeks. A week later, desperate to cash in on his long term "investment," he cajoled the young lady into losing her virginity by vowing to include college tuition for all four of her sisters, roughly $220 per semester for one sister at a time and any emergency medical expences that might arise within her immediate family. Deal closed he now stopped his previously vague talk of marriage. By 2008 the now 27 year old live in girlfriend had begun nagging her boyfriend about a promise he had made back in Manila. Taken by the moment he had grandly vowed to build the family a house to replace their grass hut. After umpteenth knock down drag em' out fights that had the Filipina packing her still meagre possesions, the boyfriend made an oh so grand gesture and told the Filipina that he would allow her to get a job with which SHE could fund her parents' new home.
After quickly discovering that a K3 Visa barred the obtainment of a Work Permit, he took the plunge and finaly honoured his commitment by marrying her at a rural Maryland courthouse. Gaining her Work Permit the Filipina quickly found a position as a receptionist at a health clinic for the indigent. Ironicaly, she would later tell her family that the poorest of her patients were much better off than any middle class Filipino. In any event, her take home salary of $220.00 after taxes went to fund the family's dream home. In the end they built the most palatial home in the village, costing nearly P1 Million ($22,000).
The house sits on the same quarter hectare, on the shore of the bay but where a one roomed grass hut had stood, a three floored stucco and brick building sat among the towering palm trees. Years earlier the girl's father had become the Barangay Chairman, the village chief, the new home cemented his position as the village's leading citizen. The Filipina had every right to be proud of having fufilled her duty as the eldest daughter of the family. Grateful to her American husband for having brought her to the US and then giving her permission to work and send virtually all her earnings home to her family, the Filipina eventually setttled into a routine, content that she was now finally able to help provide for her family.. This gratitude led to the happiest period in their marriage. However, as is often said, all things come to an end.
The huge new house in Barangay Punta sat almost entirely empty and left the family unable to even obtain the most basic of furnishings, nor even able to pay their increased monthly bills. The dutiful daughter continued wiring home virtually 100% of her meagre earnings
The 50 year old American was a union elevator repairman, a very well paid blue collar profession. An Italian American, he lived in his childhood home in the same town he was born in, a stone's throw from the homes of both his parents and his sister. Though he wasn't forthcoming about it, he had had a failed marriage decades earlier and had a grown son older than the Filipina he now set his sights upon. While most cyber Lotharios take as long as a year or more before dropping $2,500 on a trip to the other side of the world to meet what could be a terrible nightmare, our intrepid elevator mechanic arrived in Manila a little more than two months after first messaging the young Filipina.
Meanwhile...though stunningly beautiful, the 25 year old Filipina had never even had a boyfriend. Growing up in a nipa, the bamboo framed palm leaf thatched hut that serves as the average home for rural folk here, she could barely imagine the ways in which her life was about to drastically change. Never having been more than 50km from her seaside village she was accompanied by both parents as she rode an inter-island ferry two days north to the nation's capital Manila, on the island of Luzon.
Too nervous to appreciate the sights and sounds offered by Manila the young Filipina and her parents met the middle aged American, who, at 50, was older than both of the girls' parents. After two days of talking the American proposed marriage. Giddily, innocently, neigh, ignorantly the Filipina accepted at once as her parents smiled, dreaming of the materiel improvements about to enter their lives. Unfortunatly for the newly engaged couple, it was time for the man to return to America, but he did get the ball rolling with an application for a K3 Visa, a Fiance Visa that would allow the Filipina to travel to the US where, according to their plans, they would marry in Maryland.
Away the American flew as his young Filipina fiancee began to sail for Mindanao accompanied by her beaming parents. More than a year later the now 26 year old Filipina stepped off of her flight at Dulles Airport in Washington DC and into the arms of her 51 year old husband to be. Settling into a life she had never even dared to imagine the young lady was ecstatic. From a life of hand washing her clothes in a creek and eating two meals of boiled white rice and bitter melon twice a day...and a piece of dried fish when fortunate...she suddenly found herself immersed into a life of Walmart and Target...washing machines and driers. The novelty quickly wore off though, after a month when she naively asked her fiance about assisting her family as he had pomised in Manila the year before.
After a two day running argument in which his parents and sister berated her for being materielistic and full of avarice, her fiance grudgingly agreed to pay the family's utility bills, roughly $30 every four weeks. A week later, desperate to cash in on his long term "investment," he cajoled the young lady into losing her virginity by vowing to include college tuition for all four of her sisters, roughly $220 per semester for one sister at a time and any emergency medical expences that might arise within her immediate family. Deal closed he now stopped his previously vague talk of marriage. By 2008 the now 27 year old live in girlfriend had begun nagging her boyfriend about a promise he had made back in Manila. Taken by the moment he had grandly vowed to build the family a house to replace their grass hut. After umpteenth knock down drag em' out fights that had the Filipina packing her still meagre possesions, the boyfriend made an oh so grand gesture and told the Filipina that he would allow her to get a job with which SHE could fund her parents' new home.
After quickly discovering that a K3 Visa barred the obtainment of a Work Permit, he took the plunge and finaly honoured his commitment by marrying her at a rural Maryland courthouse. Gaining her Work Permit the Filipina quickly found a position as a receptionist at a health clinic for the indigent. Ironicaly, she would later tell her family that the poorest of her patients were much better off than any middle class Filipino. In any event, her take home salary of $220.00 after taxes went to fund the family's dream home. In the end they built the most palatial home in the village, costing nearly P1 Million ($22,000).
The house sits on the same quarter hectare, on the shore of the bay but where a one roomed grass hut had stood, a three floored stucco and brick building sat among the towering palm trees. Years earlier the girl's father had become the Barangay Chairman, the village chief, the new home cemented his position as the village's leading citizen. The Filipina had every right to be proud of having fufilled her duty as the eldest daughter of the family. Grateful to her American husband for having brought her to the US and then giving her permission to work and send virtually all her earnings home to her family, the Filipina eventually setttled into a routine, content that she was now finally able to help provide for her family.. This gratitude led to the happiest period in their marriage. However, as is often said, all things come to an end.
The huge new house in Barangay Punta sat almost entirely empty and left the family unable to even obtain the most basic of furnishings, nor even able to pay their increased monthly bills. The dutiful daughter continued wiring home virtually 100% of her meagre earnings