Sentidokomon

This is it! I vividly remembered how a friend raised a brow upon learning that i applied for overseas job. I could understand her disbelief because at that time I was enjoying the benefit of being a media personality. I have been a newswriter-reporter since way back 1987 and was the publisher-Editor of then Mindanao Scanner, a weekly commercial tabloid based in Davao del Norte, Philippines. I was kind of glamorous in some sort, you know, (plain: maarte’ng senyorita daw) and so it was just understandable that she doubted the seriousness of my act as I knew she could never imagine me working as househelp.

Well anyways, the publication business was not turning out well financially so I decided to just keep my options opened while I still have the muscles to do so. Going abroad was so tempting each time I see new residential buildings being constructed and new shops and businesses being put up by most ‘money-wiser’ Balikbayans. The first job offer was to teach English language to Chinese-Bruneian-Malaysian grade-school kids in a private tuition school in Brunei. They call it Tuition Teacher. I am not a professional teacher though, but the covered letter I sent to the agency plus a telephone interview by a Chinese-Bruneian agent helped to get me a nod from the employer. They said that my english was good (ewan!) so I was hired as Assistant Tuition Teacher by a Malaysian Educator in one of the chinese shools in Brunei Darussalam. She was holding tuition classes in her house as part time undertaking, (let me say, it was illegal for a foreigner like her to do such business). Through a Domestic Helper visa, i arrived in Brunei February 1999. It was quite difficult adjusting to the job especially there were 25 children under me (mga makukulit!) coming in and out of the house for tuition class and my Lady Boss was so freakly terror! She yells and beats children who read slowly or simply were low I.Q.’s. She had 4 children of her own who were not spared from extra lessons. At 5 a.m. daily I have to wake them up to study, then by 7:30 make them ready to go to Chung Hua Middle School.

When all the kids were in school, by 8 a.m., i was doing different job. Still in the same house, there was an adjacent building which was used as warehouse. The husband was into export-import of sundry goods, products mostly from the Philippines. At first I was really excited doing it because it was easy selling and do marketing for Philippine produce. With a Filipino salesman, we helped our employers in the distribution of such goods to supermarkets and grocery stores. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., i was typing, filing records, disposing and receiving orders, receiving calls, counting, labeling and all other clerical works. 6 p.m. until almost 12 pm i was still awake with the children. (Lessons ended at 10 p.m. but sometimes, the parents would come very late to pick there children, so i had no choice but to stay in the room and look after them.} What do you think about my first job abroad? Is it exciting? yes, at first month i was feeling proud that i landed a nice job in my first try abroad. Ran the 2nd, 3rd, oh come on, my patience blew out!

In between lessons, while i gave the students spelling and grammar test or speech group reading (one reads and the rest of the group will listen and correct) or whenever i had spare time in the morning, (when there were not much orders and calls) i was asked to help in the house chores. I cooked, washed dishes, mopped the floor, washed the car, cleaned the warehouse, etcetera. I did not mind it in the beginning. I was prepared for the worst, i said upon embarking myself from the airplane. Of course there were apprehensions prior to that. I just consoled myself that it was a good opportunity and I will be earning handsomely. But Jesus, i realized, not everything was about money. Yes, there were few things that need to be considered, like health. From 5 a.m. i was running from here and there, children, kitchen, office, warehouse, clients, then again children, stopping only to eat, most of the times even toilet calls were neglected. For about four months in that job, my health suffered. I must say that my employers were gaining more in both of their businesses (tuition classes and export-import) by utilizing me well. Per student fee monthly was 25 Brunei dollars. On the other hand, the husband’s business improved in terms of numbers of clients and orders of goods as it escalated through expansion of branches in the whole area of Brunei, giving him additional million dollars earnings monthly as per the records in my hand. They hired another salesman (indonesian) and a local delivery driver, yet, my salary remained the same…oh yes, it was in the contract, but eventually i felt they exploited my mental, physical and emotional capacity all for a few hundreds of Brunei dollar which was twice less than the american dollar. Worst, i had no single day off since day one of work! I was deadly exhausted and monetary return was not worth it.

End of the 6th month, i ran away. Well, i guess, this is it for now folks. I will continue the whole story in my next posting and i pray you will be interested to keep up with it. This was how i started in my first job abroad…frustrating. Yet a lot of lessons learned anyways, and i was thankful to that. My first experience has helped opened more doors of knowing how far i can go, and i can go further only by sticking to my ’sentido komon’. Yes, dear fellows, each step i made if it ended in chaos and uncertainty, only common sense will get me off the hook. Surely to me, life is common sense.

By Joy Miranda