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| Filipino Christmas Painting by Paulo Borres (touchtalent.com) |
On any Sunday afternoon, take a drive down Isabel Street, Sargent or Ellice Avenues; or stop by Garden City Mall’s Casarap stall at the food court. The Filipino stores and restaurants are full with customers dressed in their Sunday best. The smell of ulam and fresh rice fills the air as The Filipino Channel competes to be heard amidst all the noise. Church has let out and Winnipeg looks ever so Filipino.
Now that Christmas is only 5 days away, where can we find most Filipino-Canadians? Do we do anything unique? Perhaps, we will attend church a few days more. Perhaps, we will make a few more stops at the mall. Maybe, this time of year isn’t all that different. But, take a look around and mentally note where the community hovers. I’ve got to say the lottery kiosk might be the next Filipino stop.
Now, I’m not saying all Filipinos like to gamble. What I’m saying is that with this week’s Lotto Max reaching a record jackpot, there are a lot of us hopeful people eyeing the prize. So, it got me thinking about Noce Buena and Lotto Max – the new slogan for Faith and Hope this yuletide season.
I watch hopeful parents fill out lottery forms with their children strapped into the shopping cart at Superstore. Growing up, it was a treat for us kids to fill out those little circles with numbers. Mom would tell us if we won we’d get any toy we wanted. When we got older, she told us we’d get to visit family in the Philippines. We never actually won any jackpots. But, when I see those lines fill with recent Filipino immigrants, I can still hear my mom’s promises. Oh, the hope that little pencil and that strip of paper creates. I can only imagine the amount of prayers God has already heard for lucky numbers.
So, what might this observation have to do with the Filipino-Canadian community? There’s a cliché going around that immigrants come to Canada searching for a better life. Filipinos are reaching for that mighty dollar that can quadruple the incomes of loved ones still spending in Philippine peso. As true as this may be, the flip side is that earning in dollars means spending in dollars. That imaginary 4 to 1 ratio becomes a 1 to 1 reality that 1, 2, or 3 minimum wage jobs might afford. What happens then to that original immigrant dream? Yup, 5 bucks and a prayer helps bring it back.
Imagine now what so many millions of dollars can do for us here and our family there. I knew if we had won a jackpot like that, I could’ve watched my mom toil a little less for us. That was her migrant reality. Her reality is something I must be grateful for. This Christmas, I hope we can all put our little pencils down and count our new blessings as unexpected as they may be.
Merry Christmas everyone!
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