The streets of Manila. A tricycle on the left and a Jeepney to the right.
This week 23 new kids, all of whom will now be going to college next term, started working downtown with the program I have talked about in previous blogs. A group of us was excited about the prospect of getting to know these teenagers and helping them get up to speed with their new job and the associated responsibilities. Unsurprisingly, all of them are quite friendly, have some interesting personalities and are fun to work with. Once again, I think my evenings will become the part of my day I most look forward to.
Thursday night we were headed to work like we have done numerous times before and it was pouring down rain. In fact, it had rained nearly the entire day non-stop. On our way to the main avenue much of the roadway was flooded with water and the fact that we were partially exposed on a tricycle was slightly disconcerting. After that entertaining ride we began the search for a Jeepney (the main method of public transportation, basically a Jeep with the bed of a pickup where the riders sit on a pair of benches.) That night, we had a somewhat difficult time finding a Jeepney headed where we wanted to go. While we searched there were three girls climbing on other Jeepneys and trying to wash windshields. This was something that we had never seen before, likely resulting from the uncommonly relentless downpour that we were experiencing. I say “trying” because the vehicles were hardly stopping and working hard to avoid them. Often times the ladies were forced to run out of the way of the oncoming car or jump on one that was still moving. Not only did it look frightening, but I did not witness a single driver who tipped them for their work.
I wondered how bad their situation was if they were willing to dangerously jump on moving cars and suffer through both the unforgiving elements and rejection from the drivers. Were they willing to do this because the alternative was much worse? Would they be forced to sell themselves to support and feed their families? Pondering these thoughts, I was broken by the injustice. But then on my way downtown, I realized that despite all this, I had failed to act on these feelings. I was simply a passive bystander, not willing to involve myself even though there was tremendous need and enough pesos in my wallet for them to live on for a week, less than $10.
This chain of events was a depressing reminder for me of the injustice that plagues this world. It is all too easy to ignore it because oftentimes we don’t see it firsthand (or dare I say: we choose to isolate ourselves from it!) Instead its effects scream at us unceasingly. If only I was thoughtful enough to worry about the problems of those three women instead of my relatively insignificant troubles trying to track down a Jeepney.
