Surviving through ‘kamoteng kahoy’
Surviving through ‘kamoteng kahoy’
Posted under Everyday People, Uncategorized
By Marjorie Gorospe
INQUIRER.net
“Bili na kayo [Buy now], kamoteng kahoy”, this is the line which Aling Feliza dela Cruz would always yell to encourage passers-by to buy her product.
Dela Cruz, 60, lives alone in Baseco, Manila and sells kamoteng kahoy for a living.
To costumers, eating this crop means satisfying their hunger. But for her, it means survival. Dela Cruz gets her income from selling kamoteng kahoy for her weeklong supply of rice. If she’s lucky and earns extra, she might have something to buy coffee.
Sadly, a small portion of her sales goes to her because her supply of kamoteng kahoy is provided by her neighbor.
“When I do not have anything to eat, I just lie down on my bed and sleep,” Dela Cruz confessed.
As I chatted with her, she revealed years of hardships, which were evident in the wrinkles on her face.
When she was nine years old, Dela Cruz was recruited illegally to work as a house helper away from her home in Leyte, where her family was. She said her employer started beating her. Eventually, she was able to escape.
She also shared her horrific days with her live-in partner who drank all day than work. Eventually, she chose to live alone.
Dela Cruz said she spent most of her life “escaping” from an abusive employer, a bad marriage, and recently hunger, as she started selling the popular crop which she never really owns.
She revealed that she visits the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) where she eventually discovered that she had weak lungs. Much as she wants to buy medicine to help her lungs, her earnings are too meager.
Despite this condition, Dela Cruz continues selling kamoteng kahoy.
When asked about her wish in life, Dela Cruz said, “All I want is to see my siblings if ever they are still alive. I do not want to die here, where some people visit you not to condone but to gamble because during your funeral. I do not wish to die here”, she said, as tears rolled down her cheeks.
As our conversation ended, I watched her once again carrying the basketful of kamoteng kahoy.
4 Responses to “Surviving through ‘kamoteng kahoy’”
October 27th, 2008 at 2:58 pm She really needs help. I want to help her. I think people who are financially capable of helping Aling Feliza should start thinking of helping the poor lady.
October 26th, 2008 at 1:44 am please let me know how could i help this lady in going home to her native leyte. is there a way someone could help her locate any of her long lost siblings?
October 25th, 2008 at 3:37 am Is Aling Feliza really wanting to go home? And if so, how much will it cost as fare. If we can help with that but as we are in another country and we know that Baseco has a Gawad Kalinga village there, it could be possible to send her fare through them. Better yet, someone could purchase a ticket fare for her. Please let us know.
October 25th, 2008 at 2:32 am she deserves something better at the end of her days.