May 2007 Archives

This website is now 1 year old with the very first post going up on May 29, 2006 featuring the children of Laguna Province, Manila (click on the archive section for May 2006)

It had completely skipped my mind until last night around 1am while I was editing images, and I just happened to glance at the archive listing and suddenly remembered I now have a year's posts from May 2006 through May 2007!

During the past year we had 222 posts with many, many images - and a total of 16 people in 2006 who donated resources for rice, clothing for the Children & Families pictured here, and even a few medical visits for the kids.

Thank you to everyone who donated something, as I would not have been able to support these Families otherwise, and I sincerely hope that those 16 will be able do the same in 2007, before the November 2007 trip.

Thank you to my friend & Webmaster Guru Steve Griffith, who donated this website and who pays for it every month.

Thank you to graphic designer & fellow photographer Milo Hess in New York, for designing & donating the red Project Rice Logo.

Thank you to Concha & Enrique from the TULAY blog in Spain, for the bi-lingual translation of Project Rice that they link to on their home page - TULAY deals with inter culture child adoption issues concerning children from the Philippines.

Sponsors:
I am deeply grateful and fortunate to have had 2 very special people sponsor me in 2006 - my dear friend Judy was my primary sponsor who, after reviewing my photography & this website, donated support costs that allowed me to shoot in Philippines 6 weeks longer than originally planned.
...had she not done this for me, my last month in Philippines which was my most productive month with shooting & Family issues - especially with LittleFish/Rosalinda on Bantayan Island, would never have happened.

My second sponsor in 2006 was Michael Ferenci, a talented musician who found my images online and offered support costs for a few extra hotel nights in Manila (inbound & outbound) and for 2 flights from Manila to Cebu & vice versa in February 2007, so I could get back from Cebu to check on Rosa, Edison & the other street children in Manila.
...had he not done this for me, I would never have had the extra few days with Rosa & Edison's Family to take care of their needs (I would have also missed the opportunity to get Rosa to a doctor for 2nd degree burns she suffered to her hands in April 2007 - her treatment was paid for by my friend & fellow photographer Kevin Weir), and I would absolutely have missed meeting & helping Rodelyn in Manila during Feb. 2007, who was homeless & hungry and had been taken in by Auntie Josie, Rosa & Edison's guardian & caretaker.

These images and accounts of the Children & Families pictured here belong to all of you mentioned above, including the 16, and I will never be able to thank you enough for all of your kindness, and for allowing me to promote and address the food & clothing needs of a few Children & Families from the street, and from what I call the 'working poor' class - through my photography.

I have no Corporate sponsors at all - but I'm giving thought to reaching out to a few during this upcoming summer, possibly including companies who's products I use and recommend to others (Olympus Imaging [I use their E1 digital SLR], SanDisk & Lexar CompactFlash Media, Gateway computers, WACOM pen/tablet, Western Digital Passport hard drives, G-Tech for their G-Drive250, and Samsung for their LCD monitors.

I really don't have have any experience in dealing with and seeking these types of sponsorships, so if anyone out there would like to assist or advise me in doing this, I'd welcome an email from you.

To the donors & sponsors from 2006 - I'll be in email contact with you all about asking for you to repeat the same for November 2007's trip into 2008, so for now all I'm asking is that those groups just begin thinking about it.

Thank You & God Bless,
PJAMES

March 25, 2007: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines
LittleFish & baby Kalle photographed at home.

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/400s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso200

I heard from LittleFish night before last, saying she had returned to the Island and I was so relieved to know she was safe.

She'd left the Island to go to Cebu City looking for work, and with a very small amount of money was only eating once a day, staying at a friends place while she visited local businesses inquiring about jobs, and trying to handle the rejections based on the fact that she did not possess a High School Diploma.

She tried so hard there, and ended up over extending herself to the point where she did not have even a few pesos left to get a bus back to the top of Cebu, and for a boat back to the Island.

She told me she ended up borrowing those fares from someone, and returned home safely.

She also told me she has made a decision to go back to High School and graduate with a Diploma, so that she could have the tools needed to find work and support her son, and I told her I was indeed proud of her and that I was very, very happy for her decision - she knew I'd been very worried about her well being in Cebu City, and this was only complicated by her deciding to pawn her old recon cellphone in order to have funds to make that trip, resulting in very limited communication between her & I (she did save her SIM card for the phone, so she could insert it into a friends phone to get her texts & to send me a few)

I also told her that I would find a way to pay for her school tuition, books & supplies (she wants to enroll after the current summer break finishes) because I believe in her, she has a very strong work ethic, and I love her & her Family.
...I also told her I'd find a way to replace her Nokia 3210 cellphone, as they can be had in Cebu for about $25.00USD in good reconditioned shape from a reputable dealer.

If anyone would like to donate that amount to replace her phone, please let me know and I'll get it taken care of immediately with friends I have in Cebu City who make monthly trips to Bantayan.

I'm also going to make a serious effort to help get her computer literate when I arrive back there in November 2007, as I'm convinced these skills will only help her in the future.

During my last 2 months on the Island, she was fascinated by the communication power of my laptop & the internet, while she observed me working in Photoshop and writing for this site - she learns quickly, speaks good English, and is totally committed to helping her baby & her Family.

March 9, 2007

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/40s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso200

Some good news from my friend Peter in Australia who emailed me a welcome back message earlier this month - he's been watching my posts on LittleFish's Family, and has always commented kindly on my photography during 2006 - I just heard from him that he's donated $100USD for LittleFish and baby Kalle, and this will help sustain them for about a month, and this is a huge help for them at this time in their lives.

Thank you Peter for your kindness and your generosity.
PJAMES

December 25, 2006: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/250s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso100

My all time favorite image of LittleFish's sister Jenna, holding her own son Kuji.
...I ran a filter on the background, making it look like a watercolor painting - as this image always reminded me of a story book type image.

Read more in the posts below about LittleFish & her sister Jenna's issues & needs.

On Christmas Day, Rosalinda/LittleFish had invited me to the Family home to celebrate Christmas - she supervised a small party the Family had organized with the neighborhood children, with simple home made games & home made prizes for all the children there - a neighbor even brought a home made boom box stereo made from an old car stereo that was hooked up to some old speakers, so the kids were able to have fun dancing to the music.

I didn't know what the kids were expecting on Christmas Day; most children expect and get presents from their Family - but here it's very different here in Philippines with the working poor Families, as there's clearly no money to buy presents for their children.

I too was a little intimidated by the fact that I didn't have the money needed for presents for the Family to celebrate Christmas in the way I'm personally accustomed to - with the money I had, I always bought food & other necessities for them, so I was absolutely amazed at the Family's ingenuity at making sure their children and the other neighborhood children attending, got "presents" in the form of participating in games & singing; winning small hand made coco wood jewelry prizes & trinkets, as well as home made candies & sweets prepared by LittleFish's Family, from the coconuts that fall from the trees where they live (coconut chewy candies made with local brown sugar are really delicious)

I sat quietly with a smile on my face while I looked on as this very poor Family doing all in their power to craft an entirely simple and home made Christmas Celebration from literally next to nothing.

Where I was earlier feeling guilty about not being able to buy presents for everyone (I was only able to supply some food), I was totally humbled and actually proud of them for being able to take such little resources, and turn it into a simple home grown Fiesta that the children all enjoyed so much.

I enjoyed it all as my OWN special Christmas Gift that day.

Thanks for reading today,
PJAMES

JackJack's younger brother bobs for a single Peso coin at the bottom of the water basin at LittleFish's Christmas Party on December 25, 2006

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/60s f/5.6 at 35.0mm iso100

March 25, 2007: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines
Sister of LittleFish: Jenna - holding her baby Kuji

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/80s f/3.5 at 29.0mm iso400

Rosalinda's (LittleFish) younger sister Jenna also has a small baby boy, so whatever I'm able to buy for Kalle, I also buy for Kuji - I can not just buy for one baby & not the other, so that's the reason I buy so many diapers on the Island.

Jenna is nursing Kuji, and that helps because all the powdered infant formula - expensive as it is - can stay with Rosalinda & Kalle.

Jenna's husband did have a little work on the Island, but right after January 2007 he just left Jenna & Kuji and moved (supposedly to Negros Occidental) and is no longer currently supporting his child, which makes me very sad - as Jenna's full time work is in raising little Kuji, and with no money coming in from her husband she has to reply on her Family for food, clothing and necessities for herself and her baby.

Thanks for reading today,
PJAMES

March 11, 2007: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines

My favorite image of LittleFish's son, Kalle - photographed at home.

One of the strongest benefits of spending as much time as I do with LittleFish's Family (speaking strictly in photographic terms) is that they've been used to me now for the past 2 years, being in & amongst them with my camera - so I'm able to document their daily lives and issues with complete freedom, ease & anonymity - meaning they've forgotten and ignored the camera and are free to be themselves.

All this translates into 100 percent real-life images; good bad or indifferent, that document their daily lives.

And I'm treated absolutely the same, whether or not I have the camera with me - and there are many days where I do not have the camera with me at all.

One of the most spontaneous shots I ever captured there, is above - on March 11, 2007 I was quietly sitting and talking with Mama Helen outside their shack while LittleFish was off selling some of the Family's catch of the day in town, and one of LittleFish's sisters was watching her son Kalle.

LittleFish's Father David had just arrived home and went over to take his grandson and give him a hug; all this happened very quickly off my left shoulder, about a meter or so away.

I noticed this as I was talking to Mama Helen, and without looking at the camera, I hit the 'on' switch and brought the camera to my eye, firing off 3 or 4 frames (the E1's shutter is really very quiet, so there's no loud 'clack-clack' sound when shooting 3 frames per second) and I then put the camera down and went right back into our conversation.

That's the sum total, SOP of how I get my images there when documenting the Family's issues and needs.

Later that day after LittleFish came home, I went through the day's files and showed this to her, and she just smiled so big - a wonderful photograph of her son, made even more special by her Father's coming over to just hold and love him for a few moments, never paying any attention to my camera, not even for a second.

I think it's one of my best images, and one of my most important images that illustrate the love, attention, affection and caring in this hard working, yet very poor Family.

This is one of my images that I just stare at for long periods of time - I stare at it, I think about it, and it speaks to me and even more importantly teaches me about why I'm there and why I shoot.

Many thanks for reading today; thanks for looking at my work.
PJAMES

ps: the image shows Kalle wearing a brand new grey tank top with blue trim; the day before I'd taken LittleFish with me up into town to buy eggs & cooking oil they needed to make pancakes - and I noticed some new baby clothes at one of the sari-sari stores next to the market, and ended up buying brand new as opposed to used clothing at the okie-okie used markets - sometimes the new baby clothes will simply last longer than the used clothing - but the 'new' selections are often limited on the Island, so I do but new clothing for the Family when I'm able to, and used when there's no other choice.

All in all, it's just really good to see Kalle in new, clean clothing that wears well - as kids are SO damn tough on their clothes there.

April 15, 2007: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/125s f/5.6 at 54.0mm iso40

One of the most simple ways I chose to help LittleFish's son Kalle was to commit to buying his diapers every week, as nearly all the poor Families there on the Island (and in Philippines as a whole) simply can not afford these things for their children, and most kids simply have to go without them daily.

If there's a little extra money available to Families, they have to buy food - diapers simply do not fit into these Families budgets, or are reserved for rare occasions when the children accompany Parents into town, etc.

Here in the USA, diapers are available by the dozen, or in multi-dozen packs - while at the Pharmacies on the Island it always struck me to see mothers who needed diapers for their children buying 1, maybe 2 at a time and that's it....at 20cents per diaper, it's all they could possibly spend.

So I always made it a point that before I went over to LittleFish's Family - while I was out getting a load for my phone, or buying myself bread, etc. - I'd always canvass the small General store and buy Kalle's diapers in the few dozen packs available there - and if the store didn't have any stock, I'd go to every small sari-sari store in town, until I found Happy Brand, size medium - and if they didn't have a 12 pack available I'd buy as many as I could find, then I'd hit the next store, and so on.

And it had to be HAPPY brand, size medium - as the Pampers brand in medium was too large to fit properly, and their size small was too small, so it was sometimes quite the quest going from store to store to get what they needed.

Matter of fact, two of the longest Diaper Runs I ever went on happened right after Holy Week, after all the Filipino tourists & their Families had left the Island and most store shelves were picked clean.
...I had Rosa on the back of my motorcycle while her Family was looking after the children, and we went into Ste. Fe for diapers only to find absolutely none in medium size.

If I can't find what I need for them, I just smile and tell Rosa "no problem - we're on a Mission", and I said we'd just ride into Bantayan Town, 20 minutes away - and that's what we did...only to find NOTHING available in Bantayan Town!

I remember turning to her, smiling - and saying "no big deal - we're going all the way up to Madridejos then".
...Madridejos is the town at the top of the Island, about 40 minutes ride from Ste. Fe, and she smiled with her eyes opened wide, and said "Thank you Kuya - let's go!"

The ride up to Madridejos on the highway is always a pleasant one, we both enjoy the cool breeze (aside from being in the water, it's the only other way for you to cool off from the hot temps there), and we DID find our Happy brand diapers at a small Pharmacy in town, right next to the Okie-Okie market where you get used clothing for cheap prices - so I turned it into a double-play and bought all the diapers I could find, while I had Rose hit the Okie Market to find baby clothes for Kalle & Kuji, and since we were already there in Madridejos it only made sense to pick up baby clothes we needed and clothing for her younger sisters also (the entire Family's only able to afford hand-me-downs), so those two trips to Madridejos were very important & satisfying to me personally.

I'd go on 'diaper runs' at least twice a week there - and I'd also buy for LittleFish's sister Jen, as she has a 5 month old son Kuji, and I couldn't just buy for Kalle and not for Kuji also.

To see the smiles of appreciation on both sisters faces when I would stop by to drop off the diapers for their children, was satisfying to me beyond words - and to know that just for a while, their kids could run around and stay a bit cleaner, like "normal" kids from Families of means, also reminded me that 'giving' was just the right thing to do.

Thanks for reading today, and Good Saturday Afternoon to you all.

And a very special thanks to Concha in Spain from the TULAY website (TULAY is linked on this blog page), for donating resources used for LittleFish's Family in March/April 2007 - LittleFish & Family are deeply thankful to you & yours.

PJAMES

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/320s f/5.6 at 54.0mm iso400

LittleFish's neighbor Maddy looks after Kalle when I had the children over to BN's house I was staying at.

Maddy attends to Kalle - photographed at BN's home: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines April 15, 2007

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/200s f/5.6 at 38.0mm iso400

LittleFish has not texted me for the past 2 days; I'm presuming she's still in Cebu looking for work.

I've tried texting her number, but in the last text she did say she'd pawned her cellphone so she'd have some money to eat , so I'm hoping she's saved her SIM from the phone as she can get her messages that way when it's inserted into any other cellphone there.

She stated her family back on the Island is watching her son Kalle.

The image below is a favorite of mine, as it's typical of an evening on the Island with all its wonderful colors, but the reality is that it shows LittleFish's brother & younger sister joining their Father on the Family fishing boat, preparing to stay out all night and fish, as that's the shift the fisherman work there.

All night long - they're gone from around 6pm until sunrise the next morning; that's how hard they work, and the catch is whatever it is, be it plentiful or nearly empty.

That's how the Family is surviving, and I don't think they realize how much I learn from them - that's also why I'm trying to help them as best I can with food & necessities for the Family.

If you're at all interested in helping me help them, please let me know.

April 13, 2007: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines 5:57pm

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/40s f/4.0 at 54.0mm iso200

Many Thanks for reading today,
PJAMES

LittleFish & son Kalle at home on Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines: March 19, 2007

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/60s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso200

LittleFish did txt me last night, and said that she was indeed still in Cebu, looking for a job but had not still found anything. (please read the posts below relating to that)

Little Maddy watches Kalle at BN's house: April 15, 2007

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/250s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso400

While at BN's house on Bantayan Island last month, LittleFish brought her little brother with her to help with the housecleaning, and also brought Maddy with her.

Maddy is a neighbor of hers, and is a beautiful little child-in-need who watched baby Kalle while LitteFish & I worked on the computer.

Maddy's got very dark skin, and wears 2nd hand clothing - she tries to keep her hair combed, but it's so hard to stay clean all the time where she lives.

I always saw her with her trademark 2nd. hand Pinstripe Vest she wears in the image - I don't know where she got it, and at first it looks completely out of place on a child - but it does give her a very unique look, and she loves wearing it because she really doesn't have many shirts or clothes to pick from, as she's very poor.

Maddy always has a huge smile for everyone despite her poverty, and it was a huge treat for her AND for me, to have them up to BN's house while I was staying there - it gave them the chance to be in a safe, clean and modern home, and they were able to watch some kids movies on the TV, and sleep on a large comfortable couch with cushions, instead of the ground at their house that they sleep on.

Thank you Maddy for helping us with little Kalle while you were there - I wish I could do more for you, but I'm in the USA now.

Happy Mothers Day, and Good Sunday Evening to you all.
PJAMES

LittleFish & her baby Kalle photographed at home: Bantayan Island, Cebu Philippines

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/200s f/4.5 at 54.0mm iso200

Her original post this week is below, please take the time to read it.

LittleFish/Rosa sent a text message to my phone on May 9th - she told me she had now gone to Cebu City for a a few days to look for work, but since she has not finished High School she didn't qualify for many, and she was getting depressed....she told me she's eating only once a day there.

The sporadic support from baby Kalle's father has now stopped and Rosa told me she doesn't know what she's going to do.

I tried to boost her spirits as best I could, but in reality I'm feeling very guilty here now that I'm back in the USA - it was me who was helping support Rosa's Family, including Kalle (diapers, baby milk, clothes, etc) and I just don't have the resources or money here to continue it as when I was on the Island, and I'm not there with the Family any more.

I told Rosa in the text message that the absolute best I could do now, was to get back to work editing her images and then post them here on the website, in the hope that someone would see her plight and try to help in some small way....I got her permission to do that before I left Bantayan a few weeks ago; I told her to keep smiling and to hope for the best.

I have not yet heard back from her today - I told her I wanted her to text me each day she was in Cebu City just to let me know she was ok, and I'm hoping she texts me again later tonight.

Kalle's a wonderful baby who's just now beginning to learn to walk - he smiles at me every day and probably thinks IM his Papa; that's what most of the Family says anyway.

I'm ok with that; I truly miss him now.

Thanks for reading today; I'll have another update tomorrow.
PJAMES

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/20s f/5.6 at 29.0mm iso100

Jan.17, 2007: Bantayan Island, Philippines
LittleFish on the left, pictured with Mary (not her real name) who's blind in one eye - LittleFish & I were helping Mary most of January 2007, who was a victim of domestic violence.
I brought LittleFish with me that day to shop for Mary's clothes (she is extremely poor & had none) for her meals (she wasn't getting enough to eat) and LittleFish personally looked after her while Mary's case was under Police investigation.

I nicknamed Rosa 2 years ago 'LittleFish' because she's such a strong swimmer; I call her "my little sister" and she's always been a very good friend to me on the Island, and she comes from a very good Family where I've known & helped her Parents also in that time - they're a simple, working poor Family who fish for a meager living, and who live in a simple coco wood and bamboo shack (for lack of a better word) right on the beach, and I've posted before from Philippines when the December 2006 Typhoon came roaring through the Island, images of how it took the roof off their house.

I've always photographed her Family and have posted the children's images here many times - there are 7 children in the Family, and Mama Helen is expecting their 8th child later this year.

The Family's always extended their hospitality to me when I see them daily on the Island, even though they have very little to offer me (by Western standards), but that is always a profoundly humbling experience for me - being greeted by a very poor Family who has practically nothing, yet each day they greet me & prepare me morning coffee - or Milo (similar to Ovaltene, a cocoa drink) if there's no coffee - and always offer me whatever food they are eating, most times just rice & fish they get from their nightly fishing trips, cooked over a coco wood fire as they have no 'kitchen' or stove to cook on.

I'm always asked to sit down on a plastic chair, the kids always stop what they're doing to bring me a soda or whatever is available, and I spend time with the family that way, talking to Rosa's Parents, playing with the kids on the beach, and learning how a poor Family copes with the difficulties of trying to raise their children, pay the bills, and have food to eat at the same time...as I said, a very humbling experience for me.

I've always helped them over the last 2 years out of my own pocket and through the support I get from others here, and I can't tell you how many times I've stopped by their place to see the kids sitting outside - not playing, just doing chores - and I ask if they've had their rice today, and am told "kuya, no rice here..." "kuya, there's no food...", etc. - and I DO have to ask a few times, as they won't tell me right away; they are too shy and too ashamed, so I know it's difficult for them to say anything.

As hard as the Family works at fishing, sometimes there's just no catch of the day to sell to the local vendors who stop by to purchase - and when that happens, there's no money for the Family to even buy any rice to eat, so when I'm there I can not, and will not see that Family go hungry.

On those days, my daily itinerary stops right there - and I immediately head off into town, taking Rosa with me on my motorcycle (and she's so ashamed to go with me, so it takes some convincing) and ride straight to the local rice vendors at the market, where I select 50 kilos of the mid grade rice to be poured into a huge sack, to be put on a tricycle and driven to her house, so her Family can eat.

They never ask for it, but I'm thankful I've learned to know when they need it, and you should see the look on Rosa's face when we're at the rice dealer - all the stress of wondering where her Families next meal is coming from begins to go away, and just watching her calm down and begin to smile again is all the justification I'll ever need to see.

Did you ever see anyone SMILE at the simple fact that they know they'll be able to eat a meal of boiled rice and nothing else that day and maybe the next day?

We ride back to the house, ahead of the rice thats coming - and all the kids enthusiastically begin to prepare the coco wood fire on the ground, and THEY begin to smile again - their stress and hunger pangs start to go away now, as they realize they can eat a meal.

When different people ask me why I do this, why I help to support a few Families like Rosa's - I always tell them the above story, and I've always told them "because it's the right thing to do, that's all..."
...they stay silent for a few moments, and my answer is never challenged.

Last month on the Island, I was able to give my sister LittleFish a few weeks of paid work before I left - attending to BNs house I was staying in while he was away in Europe (he always asks me to stay at his place & look after it every April), and when I got the idea to develop a new Philippines travel based website a few weeks before I had to leave Bantayan, it let me give her some work she's been so hungry to find (work is really tough to find on the Island for locals) and it also let me come up with a plan for the website to be supported by advertising, so I might be able to be there longer then I'm able to currently.

I paid her twice the prevailing daily wage there on the Island, and it worked out wonderfully - I got the time from 6:30am to 8pm daily to work on the laptop, and Rosa with her younger brother & neighbor had paid work looking after BN's large house and property with its extensive garden, as I absolutely did not have the time to look after the property AND get in a full work day as mid April approached with its 4/20 deadline; I had to get everything done I was working on before 4/20 when I left the Island to start the journey back to the USA.

After we both were working all morning, I didn't even break for lunch - I'd buy the groceries and Rosa would make herself & her brother rice, noodles, fruit, etc. and one of her sisters would arrive at the house to watch little Kalle her 9 month old baby boy, so that Rosa could go with me for the rest of the day on my appointments there with the local businesses I had to photograph and get written information from, for the website.

Rosa would spend the time with the managers there transcribing written info & brochures, as I would be off photographing what I needed to shoot, and we'd move onto the next place and do the same, and we'd end the day back at BN's house, where I'd get back onto the laptop and Rosa would make sure all her paperwork was ready for me, and we'd work that way until about 7:30/8pm or so, and I'd either take her & her brother back to her Parent's place, or if it was really late I'd insist that they just stay, watch some TV and sleep over on the couch.

The few times they did stay over, what an absolute TREAT it was for Rosa, her baby & her younger brother to just relax in a beautiful house and watch a movie on a real television, in a clean & safe place - and to be able to offer them that pleased me beyond words, as they never get time to spend in a nice house like BN's, or even watch a TV - and you know how kids always love TV!

The reason I'll be writing about this & Rosa's Family all this week, is that Rosa has been pleading with me for more work - begging for more work, and I just can't give her any more, as I'm back in the USA now and am not there to support her as best I can, as I've been doing these past few months.

She's desparately looking for work but can't find any work there on the Island to support her & Kalle (Kalle's Father is a foreigner from Europe and only occasionally sends money for his baby, and most times it's just not enough - but babies need regular support, and I've been buying the baby milk (expensive) and the diapers (expensive) and the clothes (I know where to find baby clothes cheaply), and Paternal support is a different issue entirely between her & the baby's Father - and that issue is just not working out at all - and she's told me she simply doesn't know what else to do; she doesn't know where to turn to.

She's such an important person in my life that I promised her I'd put her story here on the website to try to appeal to those who've donated to me in the past for rice, meals & clothing for her Family and others - and maybe someone or a few people who are reading this now, can offer some some support for her and baby Kalle's needs by using the donate button here on the website.

March 25, 2007: Bantayan Island, Philippines
Rosa & her son Kalle photographed at home

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/250s f/3.5 at 54.0mm iso200

There's nothing I can do about her baby's Father not sending regular support - it's his own responsibility and if he's not living up to it, there's little I can personally do and I can't help her deal with it, although I do listen to her when she talks to me about it - it upsets her and makes her cry in front of me, so I've decided to bring her issues to the website today.

It was my own decision to do this, to write about my little sister and to ask readers for some help - it was not Rosa's idea, but when I asked for her permission to post her story, images and needs - she agreed, and that made me happy - I also told her I can't promise her anything and she completely understands that - but that I would do my very best to tell her story, publish her images and hope for the best.

So I thank you for being patient enough to read through all this today, and I'll continue her story here this week.

Good Sunday afternoon to you all,
PJAMES

Nov.25, 2006: Cebu Philippines

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/4s f/4.5 at 14.0mm iso1600

I'm beginning to go through 76 image folders on the laptop, holding over 10,000 images I shot in Philippines between Nov. 2006 & April 2007, and it's a thrill to see images I knew I liked, as well as images I'd passed over before, etc.

This image above is a mess, but at ISO1600 in very little available light, and hand-held at a quarter of a second, I'll take it - it was a very quick grab shot that I would have lost, had I hesitated.
...I just found it today & had almost forgotten about this image - but it brought me back as to why I took it.

...I was taking Lisa & LetLet & their brother JunJun to dinner at a local BBQ place on the street, where I get them most of their daily meals - and while we were sitting there I noticed a small and very shy child behind me on my left, obviously hungry - obviously wanting to join us.

I smiled at her and said hello, and I didn't even have to ask her what she'd like to eat - I just asked the owner to prepare a plate with what ever she wanted, and set it down next to the girls who were midway through their meal.

She was so shy, she didn't even respond to me the first time I asked her what she would like to eat - I find that very common amongst these street kids, so I always just have a plate made for them when they're around - it's much easier for them to join us that way, as they don't have to feel shy or ashamed.

Thanks for reading today,
PJAMES

ps: still have the jet lag; was up until 5:30am this morning before I could get any sleep - but I'm working on retuning the body clock; it'll happen eventually.