|  My partner and I had been for years now, what I'm going to share with you is not our love story but the story of her parents. This for me is the true definition of love, sacrifice and faith...
1988, Her dad was an employee of the Ministry of Defense in Kuwait. An overseas Filipino worker who left the country in order to sustain the needs of his family. He was a family man and it pained him to leave 3 beautiful kids ages 21,17 and 8(my partner). He went to work in order for him to afford his children's college tuition fees and in order for him to save up some money for a small business. The wife was left here in the Philippines to tend to the kids. During this time there were no internet access available to keep in touch, the wife had to travel 7 hours once every 2 weeks in order to wait for a 5 minute long phone call from his husband. This is their routine for 2 years.
In 1991, the wife traveled 7 hours expecting a phone call, 2 days passed she didn't hear anything from her husband. Thinking that he must have forgotten, she went home with a heavy heart. It was 3 weeks after that day when she received a telegram from another OFW in Kuwait, a friend of her husband who informed her that there was a war in Kuwait. She saw this in the news and that was Gulf War started. She was devastated with the news that a lot of Filipinos, Americans, Kuwait citizens and Iraqis died, held hostage and was imprisoned because of that. Then one day, a letter from her brother stationed in Kuwait arrived. "Ate, makakauwi na ako dyan, hindi ko na alam kung nasaan si kuya pero nabomba ang Ministry of Defense at maraming namatay na Pilipino. I'm sorry ate. ( Elder Sister, I'm about to go home there in the Philippines, I don't know the whereabouts of your husband but I was informed that the Ministry of Defense was bombed and a lot of Filipinos, Americans, Kuwait citizens and Iraqis died because of this, I'm sorry.)
People are saying that she was now a widow. She thought about her kids, she cried for her kids without a father, she cried for her sweetheart, she cried for not knowing if her husband is suffering right now... She cried because she cannot do anything. She prayed hard, and became a devoted christian, everyday she prayed and went to these support group meetings of those who lost family members due to tragedy. Despite of all the people saying that her husband died, deep inside her heart there was still hope that someday she'll see her husband again.
Three years had passed since this incident, the siblings of her husband held a funeral to commemorate the life of his husband, in the eulogy where she was asked to speak her words are unforgettable. "If you believe that my husband is dead, then those of you gave up on God, he is not dead and I am positive of this because I know in my heart that his love for me and his family is what keeps me holding on to life..."
Two years had passed, her second child is going to college, she don't have any money so she decided to apply in an agency to look for a job for her overseas. She was then assigned to work as a domestic helper in Kuwait. She was happy at the same time afraid that this might cause her to prove that her husband is really dead. Happy that at least she can see the places that her husband saw. She was a maid in a house of a Greek family. One day her boss asked her why she opted to live far away from her family. She told the story and they ended up weeping.
What she didn't know is that the Greek couple posted ads that they were looking for the husband of their maid. 7 days later, the prisoners of war were exonerated. A phone call came to the house where the wife is working and the Greek male answered. They were speaking in a different language, but then he called her "Wife, someone's looking for you..." She was appalled, she thought about her kids and feared that something happened to them. She took the phone and talked to the person on the other line. The person was from the Philippine embassy asking for them to attend a conference, she thought she was going to be deported. Her bosses escorted her to the embassy and after she signed some papers she waited as to why she was being summoned, then this incident changed her life.
It was March 9, 1997, she saw her husband once again, he was so thin and all bruised up because of being imprisoned for so long. She couldn't fight her tears and emotions that she jumped into his arms and broke down. She thanked God because if not for HIM, she would've lost faith. A week after their meeting, they went back to the Philippines, the husband was granted pay by the government for wrongful imprisonment. He stayed in the country for a year before he went back to Kuwait because he was offered a job. What's amazing is the person he was with in prison was one of the high ranking officials in the Ministry of Defense. He was supposed to die but he saved his life and in return he requested that he go back to Kuwait to be one of his officers.
The husband and wife now are going to celebrate their 35th anniversary, we plan to host a renewal of vows for them in order for us to commemorate that despite all the pains in life, love over rules everything.
This is our love story, a story of faith, love and hope... share yours! I hope you liked mine..
|
